Stratton

Enjoyed this more than I expected to. I've read the authors autobiography (Duncan Falconer) so was intrigued to see his fictional Stratton brought to life. Of course, it's a crowded market place and comparisons to Bourne and Bond are inevitable. I found most of the acting convincing, Sumner's character less so as some of the relationships between the characters. Plot development is difficult in the constrained 1h 50m time frame. Nevertheless, the action vs. storyline struck the right balance.

I expected a somewhat decent action movie, but instead watched something that has the appeal of a damp rag. The writing is terrible, fight scenes and sound effects are very far from believable, acting is mediocre at best.

Don't waste your time.

Dominic Cooper plays Stratton, an elite agent working for Mi6 who is tasked with taking down a terrorist who is planning on releasing a deadly nerve gas over London.

It has decent action scenes which are well filmed and bloody and Cooper is a good looking and charismatic lead. It's directed by Simon West who also made Con Air and The Expendables 2 so there's no issues at all with the action scenes.

At times though it's small budget and scope betray it as during the slower, more talky scenes it feels a bit like a TV movie.

It won't blow your mind but if you're looking for a good time action movie which is a very easy watch then check it out.

I didn't regret it.

This is OK, to a little less than OK.

WTF is Connie Nielsen doing with some god-awful attempt at a well- spoken Brit? That was embarrassing and utterly cringeworthy to watch. A world away from her performance in Gladiator.

Special effects are well below par - and a competent film unit from the BBC would have done far, far better. Indeed - Dr Who is better made than this for explosive FX.

Fairly lame and clunky handover sequence during bus sequence from the entrance of Battersea Park to Millbrook Proving track! Boat sequence that preceded it was fairly good though. Sounds like the music owes a fair bit to the most recent Mission Impossible films (Rogue Nation) also...

Overall - reasonable popcorn fodder. Don't expect too much from it - it's totally generic.

I think reviewers are being a little harsh about this film. It's an action thriller featuring the SBS, MI6 etc. Mainly British cast with a couple of token Americans. Gemma Chan is superb, with a different actress her role wouldn't be memorable but she really helps things along. Derek Jacobi, unsurprisingly good. Unlike many reviews, I think Dominic Cooper did a good job, especially given the lack of time he had to prepare for this. Connie Nielsen however was an odd choice, her posh British accent varied in intensity and felt awkward. You can't compare this to a big budget Bond/Bourne/Mission Impossible, but I found it entertaining.