SHOOT ‘EM UP (Michael Davis). 91 minutes. Opens Friday (September 7). Rating: NN
In Shoot ‘Em Up , director Michael Davis discovers that if you have lots of guns, you don’t actually need plot or characters.
I like movies with lots of guns, but I also like a bit of emotional engagement. It helps if there’s a reason to care about the dozens of people being killed. Otherwise, it’s like the scene in Matrix 2 where Neo battles 100 Agent Smiths: “Oooh, look, the special effects are fighting!”
Clive Owen is trying to protect a newborn baby whom Paul Giamatti wants to kill. Well, Giamatti’s just a contractor with access to dozens of professional bad guys who are apparently incapable of shooting straight.
Maybe they’re not pros maybe they just have access to badass tailors who make their leather coats and balaclavas. Owen gives his default performance – almost the same as the one he gave in Children Of Men – and Monica Bellucci is angry/sexy as the lactating hooker he picks up for nutritional purposes. Giamatti has fun in a rare turn as a villain.
