Based on a French graphic novel, Bullet shoots in the so-tired setting of New Orleans, where Sly’s Bonomo plies his trade as a hit man. Following his assassination of a former D.C. police officer, Bonomo finds his own partner killed by a hulking minion (Jason Momoa, Conan the Barbarian) taking orders from corrupt businessman Baptiste (Christian Slater, sorely miscast). The dead cop’s ex-partner (Sung Kang, Fast & Furious 6) tracks down Bonomo, but rather than exact revenge, he teams up so they can eliminate Baptiste.
Got that? It doesn’t matter — Bullet exists to deliver action, period. It does so with a sense of worn-down gusto, courtesy of director Walter Hill, who helped create the bickering-buddy formula it follows in films like 48 Hrs. and Red Heat. Speaking of other movies, this one borrows from many, from Eastern Promises‘ bathhouse tussle to Eyes Wide Shut‘s party with masked naked women, yet with only middling results.
As Stallone goes, this is closer to Cobra than Cliffhanger — not bad, but nothing special. It does, however, make good on its title, seemingly dozens of times. —Rod Lott
Hey! Read This:
• Cobra Blu-ray review
• Conan the Barbarian (2011) Blu-ray review
• The Expendables: Extended Director’s Cut Blu-ray review
• The Expendables 2 Blu-ray review
• Fast & Furious 6 film review
This article appears in Jul 10-16, 2013.