Bullet to the Head - Movie Review

The tag line in the poster for Bullet to the Head is "Revenge Never Gets Old", but it doesn't say anything about the actors themselves. Sylvester Stallone is definitely getting up there in age and, even with his musclebound physique firmly in place, you really get the idea that at least one dead horse took a beat down to get this movie made.

(FYI: No animals were harmed during the making of this review)

The Sly one plays aging hit man James Bonomo who is looking for revenge after his partner is taken out while they are waiting to collect their payment for a completed job. When detective Taylor Kwon (Sung Kang) shows up from out of state to investigate the murder of his former partner, he soon discovers that Bonomo is his best lead to uncovering what might be a much bigger operation than he ever expected.

After a tenuous partnership is formed, Bonomo and Kwon begin tracking down one lead after another although they definitely have a different idea of what it means to take someone down...or take them in...or take them out. Meanwhile, the bad guys figure out that someone is hot on their trail so the large, musclebound mercenary is sent out along with his hired henchmen to take out the unlikely pair. You can imagine all the shooting, punching, kicking, chopping, stabbing, and exploding that happens next.

Apparently, this movie is based on a graphic novel called "Du plomb dans la tête" which was written by Alexis Nolent. Director Walter Hill has been behind the lens for some classic movies like The Warriors, Red Heat, and 48 Hrs. although all of those were made a long time ago. The only thing that saves this new movie from either being sent straight to video or being shelved altogether is Stallone's ever bankable star power.

The main difference between Bullet to the Head and either of The Expendables movies is how it just isn't a very good movie at all. Advertised as an action thriller, there really isn't much action or thrills to be had and the banter between the characters is only mildly humorous and half the time the laughs are unintentional. Stallone has several one liners, but his slow, growling delivery doesn't allow for any sort of personality to come through and his character turns out to be nothing more than a grumpy old man on steroids and botox.

The one redeeming quality of this movie is that the running time is less than 90 minutes so if you do choose to see it, it will be over quickly and you won't feel the need to save yourself by acting out the film's title.