The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

Yes, let’s all carry guns to the streets, learn how to become master killing machines, and take justice into our own hands. There is a difference between vigilante justice being implemented for the sake of a greater good, and vigilante justice being implemented purely for the sake of murderous revenge. While Acts of Violence does attempt to carry the former message, it most definitely fails at doing so, and actually ends up promoting the latter.

The film is about three brothers: Deklan (Cole Hauser), a struggling army veteran; Brandon (Shawn Ashmore), the happily married middle child, and Roman (Ashton Holmes). Roman’s fiancée (Melissa Bolona) is kidnapped by a drug dealing and human trafficking mafia. After the failed efforts of Cleveland Police Detective Avery (Bruce Willis) to rescue Melissa, the three brothers form a mini army troop, and decide to take matters into their own hands. 

What is wrong with that? Well, a lot.

For starters, several signs indicate that Deklan is majorly mentally unstable. The film attributes his mental instability, and several mental issues including PTSD, to his years of service in the military. Aside from lashing out at family and friends, Delkan is generally very irritable and extremely aggressive. How in the world is it alright for such an unstable character to be armed, and lead his two brothers on a rescue mission? While the film tries to pass Delkan off as some sort of hero, it is very hard to accept him as such: he is a mentally unstable guy with a weapon, that’s all he is. 

Structurally, the film was pretty formulaic in relative comparison to its action revenge genre, and did not steer away much from any cinematic norms. As such, very little room was left for error. 

The acting was decent enough for a fast-paced action film. Cole Hauser pulled off the tough guy character (and hauntings from past events) with his solid facial expressions, his deep tone of voice, and physical appearance. Shawn Ashmore was also alright. Ashton Holmes made his character, Roman, come off as an in-love sap sissy, but that was probably intentional; consequently, he played the part well. Finally, Bruce Willis did what he does best: he played a cop. 

If you’re looking for a mindless action film, you need to catch this movie; if, however, you are looking for creativity, innovation, and great acting, definitely avoid this movie.