Bullet Points: Pursuit
Lionsgate will release Pursuit in Select Theaters and On Demand on February 18, 2022. Will you catch it?
- Bait and Switch: Do you remember newspapers? They sometimes had ads in them for new cars. You would see the price and think, “Hey, that’s a great price for a new car.” You would then go to the dealership and the salesman would say: Well, we don’t have that car anymore, but how about this one that costs $5000 more? This is what we call bait and switch. The reason for my story is due to the plot of Pursuit. You see the poster, and you think you’re getting a movie that heavily features John Cusack and Emile Hirsch. Both actors are in the film, but Pursuit mainly features Jake Manley as Mike Breslin. Mike is an NYPD Detective on the hunt for his wife’s killer and an escaped fugitive. This chase leads him to PoDunk, Arkansas and a run in with a tattooed computer hacker (Hirsch) and Cusack who plays Hirsch’s father. Add in some corrupt cops, a shady businessman, and some local law enforcement that might actually be on the right side of the law and you have one hot mess in the Dirty South.
- Way Too Much Story: Pursuit is all over the place. It is a 30 minute movie jammed into 90 minutes of runtime. The flow is not flowing. I had my hopes up for Pursuit due to Brian Skiba. Brian is the director, and he also directed a favorite here at Bulletproof Action, The 2nd. Multiple staff members enjoyed The 2nd. However, judging by The 2nd’s 3.8 out of 10 average score on IMDb tells me a lot of people didn’t like it like we did. I have a feeling Pursuit will score even lower with the masses.
- Can the Action Make it Watchable?: If Pursuit was a one location film, the story and possibly the action might’ve been more appealing. But then you would not be able to call your film Pursuit. It would be called: Stay in one place and just shoot all the bad guys. Emile Hirsch might play the most interesting character. He has face tattoos borrowed from Post Malone. He too is looking for answers about his wife. He shoots people, but his character is more of an anti-hero. My biggest complaint about Hirsch is his stunt double is too obvious. Did they not rewatch the action scenes and think: Damn that’s way too obvious, let’s shoot that scene again.
- Now for Cusack: This had to be a one day of filming and Cusack is gone like Bruce Willis in any movie released in 2021. Cusack does nothing to promote the plot or the pace of the film. I’m still not sure what exactly his character does for a living. He was either a cop, a gangster, or something in the middle.
One positive note about the action is the high body count. If you have a speaking part in Pursuit, there’s a good chance you end up Stone Cold Dead. Death is all over the place, and in the process, a couple of interesting characters die before they have their time to shine.
- Wrap Up: I thought Pursuit would be worth seeking out. I went in excited to watch only to be let down. The last scene is so badass, but by then it is way too late. The curious action fanatic might check it out, but please don’t go in with high expectations.
- Grade: C-
