Security - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Security

Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

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Movie
The Die Hard clone is nothing new in the action genre. Even back when it first came out, Die Hard in it’s concept was nothing new. A lone hero is holed up trying to survive a VERY bad day (or night in this case), with nothing but his wits to survive against an onslaught of bad guys. It’s really simple, and a concept that has been copied over and over again throughout the years and which has been cut apart and shifted around with a dozen or so different heroes. Security has all the earmarks of a Die Hard clone, but also decides to mix in some Lethal Weapon and a bizarre addition of some Paul Blart: Mall Cop humor into the mix. It’s a strange hybrid DTV film, and it shouldn’t work by all accounts. An aging Hollywood A-lister (2 if you included Ben Kinsley), a bunch of no name actors and stunt men, and an hour and a half runtime. All the ingredients of your average low level Direct to Video schlock that should be a chore to sit through. For some reason the hodge podge collection of better known films actually WORKS as a competent actioneer.

Eddie Deacon (Antonio Banderas) is your typical ex military veteran. He’s out of work, struggling with his marriage, and he just wants a job to help him put his crumbling life back together. Only thing is, he’s over qualified as a Captain in the Army, and happens to have failed his last psych eval or two. After a recruiter takes pity on him, Eddie is stationed as a minimum wage night security guard in a mall, where he’s forced to slum it with a bunch of Mall cop’s who either hate their job, or take it WAAAAAAAAAY too seriously. Eddie’s first night on the job is likely to be his most exciting. While he’s getting introduced to all the wonders and joys of being a security guard with a bunch of losers, a group of mercenaries hit a U.S. Marshall caravan a few short miles away and in the conflict their target gets away.

Their target just so happens to be a young federal witness named Jamie (Katherine de la Rocha) who is going to testify against a big mob boss. Said mob boss has naturally ordered a hit and the young girl is about to be murdered. That is until she stumbles onto the mall as she runs away and takes refuge there. What started out as a routine night becomes a battle for survival as Eddie has to muster his meager forces and make sure that the encroaching mercenaries have the fight of their life as the security guards desperately buy a few hours until daylight when the U.S. Marshall’s figure out that their convoy has been hijacked.

Security is nothing new. It cobbles together a handful of popular action cliches and blends in a weird bit of Paul Blart humor into the mix and somehow makes a film that is actually pretty entertaining to watch. I’m a big aficionado of low budget action movies, and have followed Van Damme, Seagal, and the like for quite some time so I’m very used to the mediocre schlock that the genre has to offer. Security follows that patter of a schlock to a T, but somehow manages to put a smile on my face as the choreography is solid, and the quirky sense of humor is endearing. Honestly, I attribute a lot of the fun of the movie due to the cheesy humor. Without that sense of humor as Liam McIntyre hams it up towards the camera, this would have been your average low budget action movie. Instead, the winking and nodding at the camera takes what would have been eye rollingly cliched in terms of action and “dramatic” moments, and gives it a lighter flair due to said humor. I was wincing at the introduction of Liam’s character, and the humor was REALLY jarring. However, as the film progressed the humor acts much the same as woody putty. Filling in all of the cracks and flaws of the main feature and smoothing out the entire experience.

Acting wise, this is nothing special. Banderas is the stand out simply because he’s a decent actor. He plays the part of a struggling ex soldier quite well, and his action sequences are quite fun (even if he sort of blends the super hero nature of Bruce Willis, and the unlimited ammo of Arnold). Kinsley is solid, but he really is phoning home the performance, and plays the part of a mercenary head honcho with a bored look on his face. The rest of the group are your average no name actors who ham their way through the simplistic dialog, with the exception of Liam McIntyre (the stand in for Spartacus after Andy Whitfield passed away), who gives a gleefully goofy performance as the Paul Blart wannabe of the mall security force.




Rating:

Rated R for violence and language




Video:

Security was digitally shot, and for a low budget film actually looks quite nice. The image is ever so slightly glossy and flat, with a distinct blue tinge that is lined with gray and black due to the film taking place in the middle of the night at an abandoned mall. Fine detail is usually good, with enough clarity to give most people a pleasing experience. You can see facial hair on Eddie easily enough, and the slight pock marks on Mason’s face. Stitching on clothing is intimately detailed, but there is some softness in the darkness, as well as the occasional bout of banding to deal with. It has a few flaws, but overall the movie is more than competent at it’s job.







Audio:

I’m using the word ‘competent’ often in this review, but it’s because the word just describes most of the movie as a whole. The audio track is exactly that, competent, as it does everything well without actually excelling at anything. The dialog is well defined (except for Antonio Banderas when he whispers) and locked up in the center channel, and the LFE is robust and full of life. Gunshots have a goodly amount of weight to them, and the few explosions that the film sports is quite powerful. Surrounds show off their stuff with gunshots and the roar of a motorcycle engine, but it’s never wildly nuanced or extremely exciting. A good well done audio mix all around.






Extras:

• Security: Behind the Scenes

Final Score: ​

As I said, Security is nothing new. It doesn’t blaze any new trails, and even as a clone of better movies than this, it really isn’t anything special. However, the movie is competently acted and directed, and makes for a pretty entertaining ride nonetheless. I was way more impressed with the film than I guessed going into the movie, and really have no problem recommending it as a fun low budget action film. At least much more than many other ones that I’ve seen recently. Audio and video are very robust, but the extras are limited to one single featurette. Recommended as a decent rental.




Technical Specifications:

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Ben Kinsley, Cung Le
Directed by: Alain Desrochers
Written by: Tony Mosher, Josh Sullivan
Aspect Ratio: 1.78.1 AVC
Audio: English DTS-HD MA 5.1
Studio: Universal
Rated: R
Runtime: 92 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: September 5th, 2017

Image

• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Decent Rental

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. Will catch it on netflix or amazon prime.