By Malice Intended

Over the last 20 years, action films got a lot less straight forward.  The rise of the everyman archetype and Hollywood’s increased focus on appealing to every possible demographic resulted in action flicks that less testosterone driven than their 1970’s and the 1980’s forebears. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson entered the movie industry poised to be the heir apparent to the Shwarzenegger throne but instead ended up playing the tooth fairy.  Had he risen to prominence in the 1980’s, he career would have developed quite differently.

With the upcoming revenge tale Faster, The Rock may have finally found the way to become the action hero he was always destined to be.  Directed by George Tillman Junior (Notorious), Faster tells the story of ex-con Driver, who is on the warpath, looking to even the score with those who double crossed him and his brother during a heist.  Billy Bob Thornton costars as a veteran cop who has been put on the case.

The recently released Red Band trailer shows wall-to-wall violence.  Brain matter is splattered on walls at almost every turn.  The trailer is a bit too long and as result gives away far more than it should (not unusual for Red Band trailers).  Though it will delight action fans, one can’t shake the disappointing feeling that this trailer spoils many of the best kills.  Faster has an extremely thin plot as is, so its effectiveness will depend on the execution.  Though no one will go into the theater looking to be surprised by the intricacies of the plot and characterizations, it’s not a good idea for the film to lay all its cards on the table in this fashion.  Even with the most clichéd of films, it isn’t necessary to tell the audience everything in the advertisements.

Faster looks as though it will provide exactly what its title suggests. It has the look and feel of a classic western, or a car-chase picture from the 1970’s.  It is in this light that Johnson’s type of charisma will shine brightest.  While there is nothing wrong with him building his bank account with inane family films, it’s good to know that his potential as an action hero will not go completely untapped.

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