Strange mix…
…of great moments and weird bits.
Frank’s beatdowns are wonderfully savage. The kitchen fight with Tony is one of the best scenes ever, ‘we’re not going to talk about this again’. In fact, I wish Costner got to do more fighting in this, his opponents didn’t have a prayer - like going up against Bryan Mills.
The chemistry between Costner and Whitney is great and the final kiss set to that song is a million dollar moment.
Great twist with the envious sister.
But the film has some problems. The opening is a mess - we get this weird opening shot pulling back from Frank’s gun in a garage where he has supposedly shot someone - it doesn’t really work. Then some dialogue with the client, then opening credits over Frank… washing up? Then a sudden cut to a dolly shot through a crowd to a TV which suddenly explodes 🤷🏻♂️ Maybe they cut everything down to save time but it’s a bum note to start on.
Why does Portman shoot the sister?
Why does Rachel not reflect on her sister’s betrayal? The sister is effectively the big bad - the mastermind, we need to see Rachel process that!
Tony is a dick but when we reach the final act he’s suddenly a great guy and believer in Frank. Why? I know he got schooled in the kitchen but it feels like there was a missing scene where he came to respect and like Frank.
The fake Oscars ceremony is slightly tacky. Could have done with a more impressive venue and maybe some cameoing stars. In fact, the fact that Rachel was an Oscar-winning actress, as well as a pop-star, kinda came out of nowhere.
The film works fine but it feels like a few reels were hacked out late in the editing stage 🤔