I saw Shoot ‘Em Up last week and reviewed the film for Cinematical. I wasn’t expecting much, so the review focuses on the pleasant surprise of discovering that the movie was as entertaining as it was. It was shallow entertainment, certainly, but it was a nice change from the dog-days-of-August dogs I watched and reviewed last month. I’m now a confirmed Clive Owen fan.
I felt guilty about liking such a violent and sexist movie, but fortunately Roger Ebert liked it too (and wrote a much better review than I did, natch), so that helped a little.
Finally, my little brother the film geek called me this morning* to tell me he saw Shoot ‘Em Up last night, and he may have summarized the movie better in one line than I did in an entire review:
“More grindhouse than Grindhouse.”
He has a point. If you’re into this kind of film, I suggest seeing Shoot ‘Em Up this weekend at night in as crowded a theater as you can … audience reaction won’t keep you from missing anything and can only improve the experience of watching this cheesy but fun film.
*My little brother only ever calls me to talk about the movies he’s seen. I have no idea what’s going on in his life, but I can tell you which movies he’s enjoyed lately.