Boss Level

Its john wick, edge of tomorrow, kill bill & taken all mixed into one fresh, funny action movie with occasional LOL one liners. great casting, the pace of movie can be improved for certain slow scenes.

The trailer actually makes this seem goofier than it actually is. time loop stories are actually difficult to tell. Groundhog Day and Edge of Tomorrow are gold standards but this does a pretty good job - taking you on the same ride as the protagonists as he learns more and more about what's happening and how he can change the outcome. Another surprisingly enjoyable part of the movie is the dialogue. It's very of aware of either itself or the corny cliches of other action movies and Frank Grillo does a good job of delivering the snark. Get comfy on the couch with a few beers and enjoy watching this one.

There are more levels of meaning to this film than may be obvious. With the number of highbrow story elements compressed into 100 mins (causality loops, DNA coded missing mass, Egyptian mythology and catastrophism) it would have been very easy to overwhelm and confuse the audience with too many ideas - but Boss Level doesn't. The story is well told, very well paced and seems to make a point of intentionally evolving from chaotic and complex to calm and clear. Clive Ventor's plan is horrific but logical and it's eventually revealed that Roy Pulver really only ever had one job from the start. When he devises his final, final, final, FINAL plan, despite everything that's happened, it makes perfect sense and also provides a valuable message about not giving up - even when you know the situation is completely hopeless. What could have been just a nihilistic Groundhog Day shoot 'em up turns out to be something far more intelligent and emotionally engaging. Good ending too.

This is quite an interesting film. It looks like a video game, but it has both action and emotional elements. I enjoyed it.

Plot

Trapped in a time loop that constantly repeats the day of his murder, a former special forces agent must unlock the mystery behind his untimely demise.

Cast

The always consistent Frank Grillo leads while flanked by his real life son, Naomi Watts, Will Sasso in a very unusual role choice (But it works) and some weird choices who may as well not even be there for all they bring to the role namely Michelle Yeoh, Mel Gibson and Ken Jeong. Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson is also there, though I'd not even realized it was him until after I'd watched it.

Verdict

Let it be known I love time loop movies, it's a great concept, a lot of fun and if handled correctly almost guarantees an enjoyable movie. Boss Level when it came out I didn't know was such a film but due to a certain casting I had no interest in, thankfully Mr Gibson is barely in the movie and simply put was really wasted (Especially considering how much I'm sure they paid him).

Upon finding out it was a time loop movie I leapt right in and gave it a shot and was immediately gripped. Despite not being a big action movie guy I appreciated this high octane level and clever time loop transitions. This was great stuff I thought, very stylish, Grillo was on fine form and I was happy I'd decided to give it a go.

And it is, it's an impressive movie and folks who enjoy time loop movies should love it. Action fanatics? This one is certainly for you as well.

But it's not without flaws, for example several characters/cast members seem weirdly used and honestly serve no purpose here. And then there is the ending, wait no sorry I'm lying as there is no ending. This is highly damaging, this would have been a high 7 but without a proper finale it's a low 6.

Could have been great if they'd just used some common sense and maybe added some additional time to pad out the supporting cast.

Rants

Great, we're getting movies with no endings now? Are the endless stream of tv shows not bad enough? We've reached the stage where I don't want to start new shows until I know they've finished and that they had an ending. I'd argue that the majority of shows now are ending prematurely, show after show cancelled on cliff hangers! Like buying a book and discovering the last chapter has been ripped out. It's simply not fair, I just discovered that Welcome to Eden is the latest casualty which though not the best show still ended on a cliff hanger and should have been finished. So very very frustrating.

The Good

Solid cast Some great action sequences Love me some timeloop stuff

The Bad

Some elements are just very convoluted A few cast members are wasted Mel Gibson That ending, or lack thereof.