Bullet Points: Deadlock
Why do I keep watching Bruce Willis DTV releases? Deadlock is now available to rent and own from all your favorite streaming services. At least it is payday for a lot of us. Don’t spend all your money in one place.
- The Plot: Does the plot even matter anymore? Deadlock stars Bruce Willis, Patrick Muldoon, and Bruce Willis’ performance enhancing double. Deadlock could be described as: Die Hard at a factory. Before you get all excited about the rebirth of John McClane, know that Bruce is the baddie, and Patrick Muldoon is the “good” guy. Will I regret writing the rest of this review? Better yet, will you regret reading it? Deadlock is directed by Jared Cohn.
- Pillows: Grab your pillows boys and girls, it is time for the Bruce Willis Pillow Meter. Any guesses how lazy Bruce is? I was amazed at the beginning of the movie when Bruce actually moved around. He looked almost active. Like he drank a BOOST before going on set. Was Bruce excited to be a bad guy? Was he channeling his inner Hans Gruber? Fear not, as soon as the bad guys take over the factory, Bruce finds a comfy chair to sit in for a VERY LONG time. Bruce takes it easy in his easy chair while his goons do all the heavy lifting. A plus for casting Matthew Marsden (School Boy from Rambo) as the main henchman, and Johnny Messner shows up as a goon too. Shame on IMDb for not even listing Messner in the cast. Could Deadlock be the “best” Bruce Willis film of 2021? Would it mean anything if it was? Enough ramblings, I’m feeling a nap coming on. I have seen Bruce act a lot lazier. But I also watch Bruce Willis DTV by choice because I’m a movie “critic” at Bulletproof Action… 2.5 pillows out of 5.
- Die Hard: Congrats to Patrick Muldoon, you are the latest actor to join the “Hey I remember you, and now you are “headlining” the latest Bruce Willis DTV action flick.” Hell, I honestly thought the bugs killed Patrick for real in Starship Troopers. Will Deadlock help Patrick’s acting career? I honestly have no clue. Patrick’s Mack is supposed to be this badass sumbitch Special Forces fella who now works at the same factory his past love interest works at or something like that. Do you think I actually pay attention to all the details while watching? Here’s the thing: Patrick isn’t that bad. I can’t believe I just typed the previous sentence. My biggest gripe is how awful the gun effects are. I know we might see more and more CG gun effects in the future, but at least make them look almost-kinda-sorta real. Please don’t use Microsoft Paint to add gun muzzle flashes and blood splatter. That’s all I ask. Honestly, Deadlock might be more entertaining than A Good Day to Die Hard.
- Wrapping it Up: When you make a lot of not-so-good movies in a given year, you deserve all the criticism you get. I’m not saying Deadlock is a good or even above-average action movie, but damn I can’t believe I found it watchable. Color me surprised.
- Grade: C
By no means a good movie, but somewhat watchable as a time killer. That might not seem like much, but given Bruce Willis’ appalling recent track record, it’s actually saying A LOT. It feels more like an oldskool B-action movie from the 90s. It moves fast enough and the action is okay, and Muldoon is a serviceable hero. Willis is lazy as hell and as a villain is no Hans Gruber, but he’s still *slightly* more lively than in recent crapfests like “Apex” or “Breach”.
Yup, at least it is not Apex.