Curapedi
I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.
Loui Blair
It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.
Lachlan Coulson
This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.
stevenrotherforth
HomefrontWhere have all the heroes gone?
Didn't Bonnie Tyler sing something about that?
In a world where today's action heroes are a bit limp it's nice to see that at least Jason Statham can compare to the action heroes of the 80's
This is probably why Sylvester Stallone chose Statham to be his right hand man in The Expendables.Speaking of Mr Stallone this movie is a product from his very own pen.
Homefront is based on the novel by Chuck Logan and adapted for screen by Rocky himself.
Originally a vehicle for Sly, I believe the choice of putting Statham in the lead role was a very wise one indeed.
Don't get me wrong Stallone would have done a good job but Statham seems more believable in this role.Home front focus's on a retired DEA agent who resides in a small backwater town.
When he and his child fall foul of the local Rednecks Phil Broker (Statham) must fight for their safety.Homefront is a simple movie.
One that harks back to the action flicks of the 70's and 80's.
With a impressive cast including James Franco. Winona Ryder, Kate Bosworth and Clancy Brown, this film should be sure to please.
In most parts it does. Take aside the finale which does venture into the town of OTT, this is a decent action drama.
I say drama. Jason Statham gets to flex his acting muscles a little more than usual but I don't think he'll be troubling Daniel Day Lewis any time soon.The biggest problem with Homefront is that Director Gary Fleder doesn't allow Statham to do what he's best at.
Kick ass convincingly!
Once again we are treated to Shaky cam syndrome. There really is no need.
Jason Statham is one of the best action/ martial arts stars working today.
Why not step the camera back a bit and let the audience see what's going on.
This is a common gripe of mine with action movies of today. It's ok if you have a star that isn't very good in the ass kickery department but Statham is a living legend. James Franco excels in a rare villainous role as does Kate Boswell as his junkie sister.
I'm sure she must have lost weight for the role as she's painfully thin here.
With the likes of Winona Ryder and Frank Grillo under utilised it's up to good old Statham to carry the show.
Homefront is a worthy way to spend 1hr 40mins but with such a short runtime certain characters and sub-plots don't get fleshed out.
The romance between Broker and school teacher Susan never has time to blossom.
I kind of get the feeling that much of the character development was left on the cutting room floor.
Sad really as this could have allowed Homefront to be much more than just another throw away action flick.
The Movie Diorama
With every film I watch of his, my admiration for him heightens to explosive levels. His commitment to the stunt work, the cheesy one liners, the mediocre American accent. He negates the critics and just does what he does best, being Jason Statham. Homefront is no different, but he has much better support. Having recently moved to a new town, a father and his daughter are embroiled in a feud with another family that soon escalates into a murderous plan for drug distribution. Bearing in mind this a screenplay adapted by Sylvester Stallone (who is no Shakespeare) and directed by Gary Fleder (yeah, me neither...), it's a damn enjoyable action drama. Illustrating the affection and protectiveness between father and daughter, shrouding these two strangers in a small community and portraying the lust for money and success from a crazed lunatic who is willing to shoot his own relatives and flee the scene. This isn't a Statham film where he is invincible, jumping out skyscraper windows landing on his feet with barely a scratch on him. No, he is actually human. A father just trying to move on with his life and avoid trouble. But alas, trouble always finds him, and so Statham does what Statham does best: annihilate the enemy. The violence is pretty damn edgy, where every punch, kick and gun shot feels surprisingly real. I've never seen so many head smashes into car windows in a film, however the result is strangely captivating. It's gritty, visceral and energetic action which I'm sure everyone wanted to see. Statham is well supported by Franco, Ryder and Bosworth who all play unlikable yet realistic characters. They are not completely one-dimensional, more like...one and a half dimensions? Franco needs to be an antagonist in more films, he can be rather intimidating. Granted, the script isn't exactly special and does become more absurd as the film comes to its conclusion. The excessive quick cuts also made for disorientating action, however I had a good time. I knew what I wanted, and I got it. Statham satisfaction at its finest.
Cardinal Biggles
OK, there are one or two clichés which the excellent talents of Jason Stratham manage to mask, and it is a very gung-ho sort of movie. But then, you know what you are going to get in a Jason Stratham film.....I'd rate this higher if it wasn't for the terrible editing of the action scenes. Too much watching MTV by the director, far too much unnecessary fast cutting. I had no idea what was going on in most of the action scenes. Mostly it was dark, everyone was wearing Redneck check, and there was no time to grasp what was supposed to be happening. And if you aren't watching how Stratham is taking down the bad guys, what's the point of watching this sort of movie? Bad call, Director, whoever you are. (I couldn't be arsed to find out, it was so uninspiring).We're in the last scenes of the movie atm as I write this, and the clichés are coming so thick and fast that I am losing the will to watch. Still, overall a movie worth a viewing when the wife and kids have gone to bed and settled down, and you can pour yourself a decent pint and put your feet up.
Bryan Kluger
'Homefront' is a strange movie to release at Thanksgiving. This violent and bloody action thriller stars Jason Statham and James Franco, with a small appearance by Winona Ryder. Based on a novel by Chuck Logan, the cheesy script was originally written by Sylvester Stallone, who doesn't seem to have grown out of the '80s action films he starred in. While Stallone is nowhere to be seen in the movie, he serves as producer and his hand-prints are all over it.In fact, this was written by Stallone a long time ago, originally as a finale for his Rambo character. The plot and story are very similar to almost every other action movie involving a single parent and a kid who get involved with bad guys. Never at any point do you think that Statham's character is in any real danger. He easily overcomes the villains, no matter how many team up on him.In a high-octane opening scene, DEA agent Phil Broker (Statham in long greasy hair) takes out a biker gang's meth lab. A car and motorcycle chase with the top drug lord ensues, and the point of the story is set in motion – Broker and his family are targeted for death.Cut to a couple of years later. Phil and his 10-year-old daughter Maddy are coping with the sudden loss of the girl's mother due to cancer, and they think that moving to a quiet town in rural Louisiana is just what they need. Since good ol' dad, who still speaks with a British accent for some reason, doesn't do cupcakes or princesses, he's taught his daughter to defend herself. When a fat bully attacks her at school, she leaves him on the schoolyard with bloody face. It turns out that the bully's parents are heavy drug users. After Phil defends himself against the druggie parents, the mom (Kate Bosworth) enlists the help of her brother, Gator Bodine (James Franco), the biggest and baddest meth dealer in the South.Franco has had an interesting year, from playing Oz to Alien to Hugh Hefner, and even himself on film. Here, he gets to have fun as a redneck asshole of epic proportions.Gator and his girlfriend (Ryder) recruit his henchman and some of the biker gang from earlier to seek revenge. What follows is a string of curse words, fight scenes and lousy dialogue. All the while, the child-in-distress scenario is hammed up and played out. I hoped that director Gary Fleder might allow Statham to use his martial arts skills to the fullest, but his camera-work is quick, choppy and uninteresting, and the action sequences are all sub-par.That being said, the movie is sort of fun, even if it's stupid fun. If you're looking for a ridiculous action movie this holiday weekend, here it is.
