POLAR (2019)

Directed By: Jonas Akerlund 
Written By: Jayson Rothwell 
Based on the Graphic Novel: POLAR: CAME FROM THE COLD By: Victor Santos Cinematography: Par M. Ekberg 
Editor: Doobie White 

Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Vanessa Hudgens, Katheryn Winnick, Matt Lucas, Fei Ren, Ruby O. Fee, Nia Roam, Johnny Knoxville, Richard Dreyfuss

The world's top assassin, Duncan Vizla, is settling into retirement when his former employer marks him as a liability to the firm. Against his will, he finds himself back in the game going head to head with an army of younger killers.

This film is so over the top when it actually has action scenes. In between it just tries to be controversial and I’m totally bad taste. Yet it becomes boring in these scenes. As even when it tries to be funny such as an assassin teaching kids about his profession falls flat and feels ridiculous.

Though that is something that in director Jonas Akerlund one has become used to. He knows how to get great visuals but with that other then bad taste you have to deal with awkward dark humor and usually for some reason copious amount of drugs and at least a junkie or two hanging around as characters.

Watching this film must be akin to what it must be like to be a certain age and go to a hip nightclub. Sure you can afford things finally but it’s just not for you. No matter how much you try to live it up. You just can’t quite get it or get into the groove. Or going to a club in the Midwest that promises a big city experience and you have been to the big City. It’s colorful and it tries to dress itself up as much as you can but doesn’t compare.

The humor here tries to be dark but it is more often cruel. The violence is quite gruesome and some of it is played for laughs when slaughtering innocent people. So that the film seems to go overboard quite often laughing at it’s own jokes. While the audience who is watching is not laughing.

The film seems to love to indulge in everything trying to be shocking for no reason. There is sex and nudity. Which might be it’s one noteworthy scene. A sex scene in a cabin that is noteworthy for it’s action and choreography, but it also feels inspired from a similar scene from the Nicolas Cage Starring film DRIVE ANGRY.

The film just comes across too often as trying way too hard to call attention to itself. Now the film could be fun as it obviously tries to story itself like a comic book. Which might be why it is so over the top. Yet it comes across as not as fun. Would be one thing if that was the point but seems to take glee and bathe in it’s debauchery. That it just leads to excess for no reason.

Matt Lucas is an Akerlund regular and he can be funny. Here he matches the film in a grand performance that somehow feels out of place.

This is the second vigilante revenge movie Vanessa Hudgens has been in. Unfortunately this is another film that she appears in that is bad. Even though she tries her best with what she is given.

There are three action sequences that try to be inventive but are only passable. The film builds into what eventually becomes a let down. So that after the three decent action sequences. It tries to be dramatic and that actually makes things go from bad to worse. Where as at least with the action the film moves and has a little credibility once it loses that all bets are off. Tries to be glossy but feels like a gritty character version of suicide squad at times. That seems obsessed with excess especially when it comes to nudity. That might be from the directors constant work In music videos as well as him letting off steam as he seem unrestrained here.

The film might even be fun if it could recognize camp but it all seems to take itself partially more seriously or at least acts that way. That you would expect that it to be a teenagers fantasy if a film with drugs, sex, action all over the place

The film tries to make itself somewhat identifiable with a villain with bad hair stealing pensions from those who have earned it. Seem familiar?

The film keeps being compared to JOHN WICK as a retiring assassin. Though really as stupid and silly as the plot of JOHN WICK sounded when you heard it. Is how this film comes off.

Tries to be glossy but feels like a gritty character version of suicide squad at times. That seems obsessed with excess especially when it comes to nudity. That might be from the directors constant work In music videos as well as him letting off steam as he seem unrestrained here.

The film might even be fun if it could recognize camp but it all seems to take itself partially more seriously or at least acts that way. That you would expect that it to be a teenagers fantasy if a film with drugs, sex, action all over the place.

The ending leaves room hopefully for a sequel. The only ones hopeful are the actors who characters survived and the filmmakers. As the ending feels tacked on after they have already painted themselves into a corner.

GRADE: F