SMALL IMPACT
What do you get if you combine Air Force One, Snakes On A Plane and The Troll Hunter? Actually that sounds like a fantastic film. Unfortunately that's what writer/director Jalmari Helander has tried to do with Big Game, and it doesn't quite match expectations.
Samuel L. Jackson stars as William Alan Moore, President of the United States, on his way to a G8 summit in Helsinki, Finland. However a psychotic Middle-Eastern terrorist with a passion for 'big-game hunting' pays off some of the President's staff, blows up his plane Air Force One and decides to hunt him for sport. But the terrorists haven't planned on Moore finding help in the form of Oskari, a young Finnish boy on a solo hunting trip through a non-specific Nordic forest, trying to prove his masculinity to his father.
I'll be honest; with the adverts, trailers and billboards all focussed on SLJ holding a machine gun, quoting one liners and explosions going off left, right and centre, I feel like my expectations were slightly higher than usual going into Big Game. It screamed 80s/90s throwback, high-concept nonsense, but I was looking forward to it. However I didn't really expect this amount of nonsense.
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| Villain Mehmet Kurtuluş does not come in peace... |
But instead it gets bogged down with silly conspiracies, sub-plots that don't get fully developed and makes the villains seem downright stupid and weak.
In trying to appeal to all audiences, Big Game intentionally falls between the 12A and 15 certificate territory and suffers because of it. It's a bit too cheesy and young for the mature audiences, but a bit too violent and political for the young 'uns.
Whilst I did love the authentic Finnish background to Oscari's masculinity trial and his relationship with his father, it was eventually overcrowded by the American bravado and silliness. The writer/director was quoted as intending to combine an action film with that of a coming-of-age drama, and therefore I don't think he knows which one he wants it to be.
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| SLJ enjoyed hearing he was heading to Blackpool after the interview |
As the most expensive film to come out of Finland and for it's honest attempts at trying to enter the worldwide blockbuster market, I'm tempted to recommend seeing Big Game. However as more and more ludicrous things began to happen, my frustration and lack of patience grew. It's a true shame but I would perhaps wait until it comes onto Netflix,
Rating - 4/10
Until next time folks, thanks for reading!
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