Blitz - Statham (made for TV)

I'll start by saying that I'm a huge Jason 'The Stath' Statham fan (sorry!) and I pretty much watch everything he's in.  I'm well aware that 90% of his output his hardly going to be 'high brow' entertainment with deep character development and interlinking character arcs.  What I normally expect is a gruff, bald man punching bad guys (and most recently giant sharks!).  And, normally, I get what I sit down for and come away completely fulfilled.  However, with 'Blitz' there just didn't seem to be enough there to warrant what was - effectively - a 'big budget film.'

I'm used to seeing The Stath locking horns with numerous baddies and wiping them out, not to mention loads of action, fight scenes and that oversize shark again.  In short… I see Jason Statham as a major Hollywood action star and don't really see him in what seemed like such a 'small role.' And, no, I don't mean he only has a 'bit part' in 'Blitz.' He is the film's star after all and there's probably no one else you'll remember seeing in anything (oh, I think 'The Governor' from 'The Walking Dead' pops up).

Blitz' is set in London where a serial killer targets cops.  The Stath is the copper tasked with bringing him to justice.  And that's about it.  The killer ('Blitz' as he calls himself, if you're wondering where the title comes from) isn't particularly threatening.  He just walks up to police officers on the street and shoots them.  There's no 'Se7en' style performing intricate acts with the bodies to make any sort of political point/message.  Nor does he do anything sick with his victims after he's killed them, like you may expect from someone like Hannibal Lecter.  He  just kills them then wanders off.

Plus there's no real action to speak of.  The film begins well enough.. We see The Stath beat up a gang of muggers and that's possibly the high-point of the film.  Okay, so there are a couple of punch-ups and about one major chase (on foot), but that's about it.  I know, I know, some people will say that this is a 'cops and robbers' movie, not 'The Expendables 4,' but when you have an action star famed for over the top films like 'Crank' and 'The Transporter,' I just expected more.

However, I could have lived with the lack of action if there were some memorable characters to speak of.  The killer isn't frightening - he's just annoying.  There are a few other characters who are there to only speak in cliches.  Seriously, that's what wound me up the most about the film - the dialogue.  It's like if you had to list fifty cliches you'd hear in a British cop film then you'll find them all here.  Even The Stath struggles to make his lines sound believable.  He’s okay when he’s exchanging a little bit of banter with his – obviously ‘mismatched’ – partner (a gay police officer who also has a tendency to take the law into his own hands), but that’s about it on the dialogue front.

Basically, the film is so bland that it could have been made for TV.  In fact, if I'd come across it on late night TV (minus Jason Statham), I'd probably just watch about twenty minutes of it and then turn it off - it's that average.  I know I'm ripping on it, but I didn't hate it entirely.  Jason Statham is about the only good thing in it and, as I'm a die-hard fan, I could appreciate it simply for that.  However, coming from a star who makes so many great, fun, ridiculously over-the-top action films, I've already got plenty more (and, of course, better!) films of his to watch, rather than waste my time on this one again.  Sorry, Jason - please punch more mammoth, aquatic sea monsters next time!

6/10 Should probably keep you awake if Freddy Krueger was haunting your nights