Kim Gentes

Good concept, good suspense, good action. Not a perfect mix.

Tired of the same old daily life you've been living in suburban, middle-class America? Maybe you should be happy with what you have. This is the warning detailed in graphic violence of the action/thriller/gangster adapation called Death Sentence. Nick Hume (played by Kevin Bacon) is an upper level manager with a relatively boring career. He has a great family and a fine life. Into this world of safety bursts gang violence that abruptly ends the life of Hume's teenage son. Watching his dieing son, Hume's grief and anger become overwhelming to the point of retribution. In this state, he begins to wage a war on the gang that caused the death of his son.

The story is intriuging enough with the setup, but the action begins to take over the film. Soon the notions of a plot and plausability are left with a spiraling ascension into bullet ridden violence. There are some very good moments here by Kevin Bacon, and his co-star Kelly Preston, who plays his wife. But the escapes and heroics that take over the film become more like James Bond and Jason Stratham, than the "everyman" that Bacon is supposed to be. After the initial setup of about 30 minutes, the film retreats for about an hour into complete violence and action, only returning to a morality lesson for the ending sequence.

The film is definitely worthwhile seeing, and it has good components of human drama, action and suspense. But one is left feeling like these good components just weren't mixed that well. After seeing unbelievable gunfight scenes, and having almost everyone die, it seemed a little trite to conclude with trying to teach us all a good lesson. There are some strong performances by Bacon, Preston and John Goodman (who plays the most sickly vision of a criminal father you can imagine) and these bouy the story and keep you concerned for the characters.

As for the MPAA rating of R, I would say it is too low. The violence and graphic nature of the film is horrific for any child and is likely too much for many adults. The language is pervasive and affronting. I would have set this film at NC-17. Too much for most adults, let alone kids under 17.

Amazon Link: http://amzn.to/RHOrc9

Review by Kim Gentes