Why our biggest action stars retreated to B-movie territory
They were once the biggest of big box-office action heroes. Their face on a billboard was enough to sell popcorn by the tonne, and while critical credibility came and went, no one could argue their muscle in the arena of big dumb fun.
But when shunted aside by a new crop of young upstarts, it is nice to know that the one-time blockbuster star has a gentle pasture to retreat to in their later years to keep the bank balance ticking over — the B-movie.
Bruce Willis and Nicholas Cage both find themselves this week on the promo posters of two on-demand releases that in a normal world would have had scant hope of darkening the omniplex door. In Planet Covid, however, each of their respective outings — low-budget genre flicks designed for throwaway thrills — are on an equal billing with more lofty fare a mere swipe away.
Cage has always had something of an outsider status, even as one of Hollywood’s top-grossing stars. His ability to flit between chest-pummelling silliness
(The Rock, Face/Off, etc) and award-worthy classics (Adaptation, Leaving Las Vegas, the latter landing him an Oscar in 1995) reinforced this sense of eccentricity. More recently, hypnotic horror Mandy and Kill Chain suggest Cage is up for anything, just as long as it helps pay off his massive tax arrears.
Willy’s Wonderland (no cert) is
Cage in the “smash things” mode of this recent phase in his career (“Rage Cage”, as fans have dubbed it). It sees him play an unnamed drifter who has a suspicious tyre blowout near a sleepy nowheresville. To pay off the mechanic, he must clean up a disused amusement park. While scrubbing away through the night, he discovers that the animatronic creatures inside are possessed by killer demons who once preyed on children. A plucky local teen (Emily Tosta), intent on destroying the murderous facility, teams up with our silent hero to help bash giant robotic teddy bears to a pulp.
Although ultimately insubstantial, Kevin Lewis’s film has a decent sense of its own B-movie ridiculousness, and cleverly disguises its shoe-string budget. Cage, who produces as well as stars, is understandably the focal point and is decent value for it.
The same can’t be said for sci-fi
horror Anti-Life (Cert 15) and its unlikely star, Bruce Willis. He plays Clay, the exact type of tough-but-fair, blue-collar alpha male that Willis can sleepwalk through (which he does here). Clay is part of the engine crew of a ship transporting masses of cryogenically frozen humans through deep space to a new planet after Earth has been rendered uninhabitable by us. Lo and behold, a murderous xenomorph starts infecting the crew members, leading to a trial-and-error battle of survival through the ship’s steamy corridors.
While this may sound worth a punt for those in thrall to a certain Ridley Scott classic from 1979, do not be fooled. Directed by John Suits and written by Edward Jake and Corey Large, Anti-Life is a dull and tacky sci-fi actioner that doesn’t even have enough wit or mayhem to make it a bemusing curio (something that Willy’s Wonderland, for all its bluntness, might be able to argue). Strangely enough, Willis seems right at home with his boiler suit and flame gun, going through the motions in a film that goes through the motions. There are cast members around him who are busting a gut (Cody Kearsley and Callan Mulvey, for instance), but they can’t save something as shamelessly derivative and lazy as this.
But even if Anti-Life had an original idea in its head, there is never a hint that Willis is interested in helping it transcend its shortcomings. At least Cage puts his back into Willy’s Wonderland, pumping sweat and emptying himself into scenes with such ferocity that you fear for his cardiac health. One example is a bizarre second-act interlude involving the 57-year-old dancing while his hands are clamped to a pinball machine. It is entirely indulgent but at the same time, it fits snugly with Cage’s brand of odd. While you may never give a second thought to the film as a whole once the credits have rolled, that one scene is indelible thanks to its star.
It remains to be seen if we look back at this strange period with a sense of nostalgia. When cinemas reopen, films like these won’t really trouble our radars unless we go looking for them, but right now, they offer a bemusing glimpse of how some screen careers end up. Just like Cage and Willis, you take what you can these days.
Netflix; available from Tuesday
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As film distributors rejig their schedules to adapt to prolonged cinema closures, we have two sports documentaries this week. Of the two, Pelé focuses more on the sporting technicalities, but given the fact that the subject still holds soccer records, it has to. However, it is also full of human and historical interest.
Edson Arantes do Nascimento, best known as Pelé, turned 80 last October. Directors Ben Nicholas and David Tryhorn show the legend approaching his interview seat in a walker and it is something of a shock. Pelé’s huge charm is immediately evident though, he is a great subject. His footballing prowess is undisputed, he played in four World Cups and was instrumental in winning three. But, his personal story and his role in Brazil’s very difficult history are fascinating too.
In the 1950s, soccer had an importance in Brazilian life that makes even Ireland’s Italia ’90 experience look tepid. However, there is an interesting parallel between the two countries in the discussion of the “mongrel complex” and the need for success and external recognition.
The film is possibly a bit long for the non-soccer obsessed, but the man and the context make for very interesting viewing.
BRUNO V TYSON
Sky Documentaries and Now TV; available from Friday
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My most abiding memory of British boxer Frank Bruno is of an amenable variety show guest with a big laugh. However, he was, briefly, the heavyweight champion of the world. His career was defined by his rivalry with Mike Tyson, and so too, in some respects, was his life. As the title suggests, Ben Hirsch’s doc is about this rivalry and you don’t need to be a sports, or boxing, fan to enjoy and appreciate it.
Frank Bruno overcame a difficult childhood to become an extraordinary athlete and, in the words of one of the film’s interviewees, “the acceptable face of black masculinity” in 1980s Britain. However, he came in for a lot of criticism from the black community and was referred to on occasion as “Uncle Tom”. This and his years-long battle against his nemesis, Tyson, are all covered in the film which also examines Tyson’s complex life.
Rather than a specific study of pugilism, it is mainly a story of two men. Both of them fought demons as well as each other and at the end of the film, they meet again. Now in their 50s, and apparently wiser as well as older, their meeting is a great ending to a fascinating and moving film.
GATECRASH VOD; available from Monday HHH
This British psychological thriller is adapted by Terry Hughes from his own play. Its stage origins are evident throughout what is always, and was always intended to be, a claustrophobic watch. From a rather over-dramatic start, it settled into an interesting study of guilt and revenge. Along with other elements, the film revolves around the question of whether we feel bad about something because of remorse, or simply out of the fear of getting caught.
On the way home from a party, Nicole (Olivia Bonamy) and Steve (Ben Cura) are involved in a hit and run. Their shock and fear quickly descend into an abusive, violent and evidently familiar blame game. This part is very stagey and melodramatic. When a policeman (Samuel West) knocks on their door, things take a surprising turn. There will be another surprise later, thanks to Anton Lesser who played Qyburn in Game of Thrones.
It is an emotionally ambitious film. Along with the familiar thriller themes of justice and revenge thriller, there are threads of domestic violence, emotional abuse and personal responsibility. The dialogue is too wordy but you do keep wondering where it will go next.
Áine O’Connor