As we are
approaching the end of the summer movie season, studios are racing to get their
films out there. Good or bad, the studios are ready to move on to the award
season prestige pictures that dominate the fall. August is considered the
dumping ground, months where studios think that audiences will go see whatever
you throw out there. Most of the films
released then are the ones that have been held up in post-production hell for a
while and are just yearning to be free. After a tumultuous postproduction release
schedule that involved the bankruptcy of its original studio, Kidnap is finally
out and it is undoubtedly one of those movies.
A typical
afternoon in the park turns into a nightmare for single mom Karla Dyson (Halle
Berry) when her son suddenly disappears. Without a cell phone and knowing she
has no time to wait for police help, Karla jumps in her own car and sets off in
pursuit of the kidnappers. Karla must risk everything to not lose sight of her
son as the film tells the story of a mother's attempt to take back her son
leads her to ask herself how far she will go to save her child.
Directed by
Luis Prieto, Kidnap aims to serve as a pulpy throwback to the action movies of
the past. Think of films like the Mel Gibson actioner Ransom or one of the many
Harrison Ford films where he wants his family back and then add in a dash of
Speed and that is the kind of film Kidnap is. While it has these clear
influences, Kidnap barely registers and does not live up to these standards.
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| I will find the person that stole my career and I will destroy them! |
With the
exception of Halle Berry, it seems like a film that was made on autopilot.
Every action sequence is shot and edited in a way that is dizzying and at
points exhausting and not in a good way. It is reminiscent of the editing in
Taken 3. There were several sequences where I had to look away just to try and
understand what the hell was going on. The stunts are top notch but the
post-production zooms that are prominent throughout the film are exhausting and
bring the film down several pegs.
The bright
spot in the film is shockingly Halle Berry. Halle Berry is relentlessly
committed to her role as a mother who will do anything to get her child back. The
panic and fear on her face is so genuine that it makes it much more
heartbreaking when the script lets her down and makes her character look like a
bumbling moron. It’s the kind of high-energy go for broke performance that
elevates mostly bad films into a solid watchable film. It is the kind of
performance that made me wonder what this film would be like if it was in the
hands of a director and writer who was as dedicated as Berry is.
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Score
-Liam S. O'Connor