A Force Of One Blu-Ray Review

★★★ 1/2☆

Anchor Bay take us back to the genesis of an icon, in A Force Of One, one of Chuck Norris' first major starring roles. Now remastered on Blu-Ray for the first time, alongside The Octagon, get ready for your very own Chuckfest.

So there's a little problem. During a routine investigation, a crack narcotics team (excuse the pun) is taken down one by one by a karate chopping serial killer. Like all reasonable minded people, the police chief decides that all officers should be fully trained in martial arts. But who could train them? Oh, only Chuck Norris. That's right, Chuck Norris, in the form of karate expert Matt Logan.

Unfortunately, Matt's reluctance to get involved is finally broken, when his adopted son becomes the karate killers latest victim. Soon Matt driven by vengeance is thrust into an epic battle of good, evil and face-kicking.

Regardless of how dated the film may appear - courtesy of Chuck's huge moustache (which dates back to the early 1800s) and surfer hair style, it is hard to deny that it looks good on Blu-Ray. You haven't seen Chuck Norris kicking someone until you have seen it in high definition. Norris, who choreographs the film does a stellar job arranging the fight scenes with a sense of realism and precision, never looking contrived.

A Force Of One is an interesting hybrid of the martial arts feature with the police thriller, which proves to be a refreshing alternative to a simple cop drama or martial arts movie. The concept is silly, police officers being trained in martial arts? Why aren't they just given bigger guns? But that is all part of A Force Of One's seventies charm. Part of the joy of watching a film like this is that it does not take itself too seriously, with everything simply aimed to entertain the viewer.

Part of A Force Of One's pulpy charm comes from Ernest Tidyman's (Shaft, The French Connection) gritty screenplay. Whilst fun for the most part, Tidyman also captures the sense of tension and foreboding that every good crime thriller should come equip with. This paired with Paul Aaron's surprisingly violent direction - especially in the film's final showdown between Chuck and the karate killer, creates a highly memorable watch.

Praise must also go to Chuck's competent acting ability as well as his expert choreography. We feel that Logan is a man driven by revenge and hurt, with Norris also managing to have some fun with the role - particularly through the relationship between him and his colleagues.

A Force Of One is a surprising entry in Chuck's back catalogue. A somewhat silly concept proves to be a bloodthirsty, well executed fusion of the martial arts feature and a gritty cop drama. Norris choreographs with a strong sense of realism and manages to both convince and entertain in the role.

Andrew McArthur

Stars: Chuck Norris, Jennifer O'Neill , Clu Gulager
Director: Paul Aaron
Release: 6th August (UK)
Certificate: 15 (UK)

The Pact Will Invade UK Homes This October

The break-out horror movie smash of the year that has been electrifying hardened genre fans, The Pact combines the supernatural terrors of Paranormal Activity with the tense atmospherics of a serial killer thriller to create a unique, modern-day take on the classic ghost story. This October You will be able to own the film on DVD and Blu-Ray.

Following the death of her mother, Annie receives a phone call from her former drug addict sister, Nicole, imploring her to come back to visit their family home and to attend their mother’s funeral. Still tortured by memories of a troubled childhood, Annie is reluctant to revisit the past, but eventually agrees to Nicole’s request. However, on arrival at the house she finds no trace of her sister and, when Nicole fails to turn up at the funeral, Annie simply assumes she has relapsed into drug use as a way of dealing with her loss. Not wishing to spend the night alone in her mother’s house, Annie invites her cousin, Liz, and Nicole’s estranged young daughter to stay over.

But it’s not long before Annie begins to sense another, unseen presence in their midst. Household objects are inexplicably moved around, strange noise are heard during the night and a broken picture frame reveals a photo of a sinister figure. Then all hell breaks loose. Annie finds herself physically threatened by this malign supernatural force residing within the house and, following a particularly terrifying assault, discovers that Liz, too, has disappeared. With her life now seriously at risk, and time running out, Annie is forced to confront her worst fears and solve the mystery surrounding her family’s history before it is too late.

When it comes to real scares, you can’t beat a really good ghost story and this one ranks right up there with the best of them. Very much in the tradition of “Insidious”, “Stir Of Echoes”, “The Entity” and “The Haunting”, this is a highly atmospheric and genuinely frightening supernatural shocker that had us completely on edge throughout, elicited screams and built to a climax that had us peering through our fingers. It also features a stand-out lead performance by Caity Lotz as Annie, a strong and sexy biker chick who really isn’t one to be messed with.

First-time feature director Nicholas McCarthy, with up-and-coming female lead Caity Lotz (Death Valley; Mad Men), Casper Van Dien (Sleepy Hollow; Starship Troopers), Agnes Bruckner (Kill Theory; Vacancy 2: The First Cut; Blood And Chocolate), Haley Hudson (Killer By Nature; Freaky Friday) and Kathleen Rose Perkins (Episodes). The Pact will be arriving in UK&Ireland on DVD, Blu-ray courtesy of eOne Entertainment on October 1st.

Fernando Meirelles' 360 Review

★★☆☆☆

Fernando Meirelles’ thoroughly impressed with his features City Of God, The Constant Gardner and the underrated horror gem, Blindness, however the director’s latest release – ensemble drama, 360, proves to be a far patchier affair than his previous work.

This drama centres on the lives of an array of interconnected people all of whom are at turning points in their lives. Based on a screenplay by Peter Morgan (Hereafter, Frost/Nixon), 360 takes us to several different countries and introduces us to an eclectic mix of characters from businessman, Michael (Jude Law), his wife (Rachel Weisz), a recovering sex offender (Ben Foster) and an older man searching for his missing daughter (Anthony Hopkins).

Meirelles’ feature should be an intimate and personal affair, after all we are shown these characters at crossroads in their lives. There are several fleeting moments when the director captures this perfectly (such as Hopkins’s turn as a father unsure whether to continue his search for his missing daughter) but for the most part, too little time is spent with each character to fully sympathise with their journey. This is partly due to an excessive amount of characters and trying to connect them often results in a clunky and uneven, patchwork-style narrative.

Had 360 devoted more time to less characters then it may have proved a more coherent and powerful piece. The opening promotes the theme that sex influences many of our decisions, which can be seen through Jude Law’s married businessman attempting to meet an escort, when on a business trip in Bratislava whilst his wife (Rachel Weisz) continues an affair with a young photographer. This segment also allows for some solid performances from Law and Weisz. However, as the connections become more and more contrived this message begins to lose impact bringing 360 to a standstill. Fortunately the appearance of Anthony Hopkins midway through the feature sparks some life into the tired, 360. The Welsh star features as a John, a man travelling to Arizona to identify the body of a young girl, who may be his missing daughter. On his flight John meets a young Brazilian girl, who reminds him of daughter and helps him decide whether or not to continue to his search. Hopkins truly dominates the screen with his heartfelt performance, particularly when his character delivers a touching monologue about his search. Meirelles’ handles the scene beautifully and this is without doubt, the highlight of a disorganised film. Sadly, 360 faces a rapid decline after this promising sequence with a formulaic and unconvincing pitfall featuring Russian gangsters bringing the film to a hault.

The conclusion of 360 tells us that we have come full circle, however, it is hard to agree with this as it seems the film stalled at 180 degrees. Despite a promising opening, 360 is a lifeless and tired film lacking in any distinct physical style or charm. The loose thread of human relations that connects it feels bogged down by too many characters and an unfocussed, clunky narrative. The performances prove to be the main highlight, most notably Hopkins’ thoroughly watchable turn.

Andrew McArthur

Stars: Jude Law, Rachel Weisz,Anthony Hopkins, Ben Foster
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Release: August 10th (UK)
Rating: 15 (UK)