(No major spoilers but some plot points are revealed) It's quite unusual to see a UK made action/martial arts film as opposed to the plethora of period pieces and dramas made over here so for that reason alone the director and production team deserve credit. Essentially the film revolves around a man's brutal revenge against his ruthless employers - fairly standard plot but still well executed here.
When you consider the budget for this piece (around £10-20K according to reports) and that it was self-financed by the producer and director team Phil Hobden and Ross Boyask, it's amazing that something so action packed could be attempted, let alone filmed and distributed. From the opening scene with a 10-minute mayhem fight to the closing showdown, there is plenty of action along the way with character development and a little romance playing a minimal role (as expected in an action film).
Naturally given the budget constraints there are flaws. The opening scene is perhaps a little overlong and does betray the small amount of money available. Special effects are limited and often the camera angles are chosen so the blood and cut effects don't need to be shown. Also the cast is pretty much made up of unknowns. Some do a good job (especially the leads and the main villain) while some of the smaller performances leave something to be desired.
The fistfights are well choreographed and must have taken a long time to get right. Especially good are the boxing scenes midway through, a fight between the main character and a sword wielding henchwoman and the relentless finale where literally dozens of people bite the dust. And there is no shying away from the violence (that you might get in a Hollywood blockbuster that has to be cut down to get a family friendly rating certificate). Plenty of people (nearly the entire cast) die brutal deaths here.
Overall, a good first effort. It is the first feature from Modern Life although many short films have been made by the team in the past. Despite some shortcomings, most fans of 80s style action movies (such as Commando, American Ninja etc.) will enjoy this effort and hopefully the team will have more money to do even better films in the future.
When you consider the budget for this piece (around £10-20K according to reports) and that it was self-financed by the producer and director team Phil Hobden and Ross Boyask, it's amazing that something so action packed could be attempted, let alone filmed and distributed. From the opening scene with a 10-minute mayhem fight to the closing showdown, there is plenty of action along the way with character development and a little romance playing a minimal role (as expected in an action film).
Naturally given the budget constraints there are flaws. The opening scene is perhaps a little overlong and does betray the small amount of money available. Special effects are limited and often the camera angles are chosen so the blood and cut effects don't need to be shown. Also the cast is pretty much made up of unknowns. Some do a good job (especially the leads and the main villain) while some of the smaller performances leave something to be desired.
The fistfights are well choreographed and must have taken a long time to get right. Especially good are the boxing scenes midway through, a fight between the main character and a sword wielding henchwoman and the relentless finale where literally dozens of people bite the dust. And there is no shying away from the violence (that you might get in a Hollywood blockbuster that has to be cut down to get a family friendly rating certificate). Plenty of people (nearly the entire cast) die brutal deaths here.
Overall, a good first effort. It is the first feature from Modern Life although many short films have been made by the team in the past. Despite some shortcomings, most fans of 80s style action movies (such as Commando, American Ninja etc.) will enjoy this effort and hopefully the team will have more money to do even better films in the future.