Stars Nicolas Cage, Danny Glover, Max Ryan, Michael McGrady with Pasha Lychnikoff, Rachel Nichols, Aubrey Peeples and Peter Stormare Directed by Paco Cabezas Is Nicolas Cage slowly descending into DTV status? Or is he already there? Tokarev hit the screens here although I hear is gone direct to video elsewhere, and there is nothing very much to argue for either case; cinema or direct sales. Thing is, while the movie plays out as a decent action flick with Cage playing a desperate father searching for answers to his daughter’s death, believing his dark past has come back to haunt him, the finale, or rather the twist in the tale, works to elevate it. Only ever so slightly, like many of those noir films where nothing is what it seems. Is that a spoiler? While many of us would prefer Cage as the quirky oddball character (see Adaptation, Moonstruck, Raising Arizona, Kick-Ass, even Joe), he also has these rage-fueled /driven characters that he seems to have been typecast into (see -or don’t- Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call-New Orleans, Seeking Justice, Bangkok Dangerous, Stolen, Drive Angry) and Tokarev would fall into the latter category. One might feel like he’s seemingly sleepwalking through the movie, or he’s doing what comes naturally with these movies. On average, it’s a decent performance that doesn’t go too over the top like some of his other movies. The rest of the cast are made up of fairly familiar faces, most of them going through the motions. Danny Glover is still playing the tired old cop - or at least, it feels that way. Peter Stormare is still cool, but has nothing much to do. Pasha Lychnikoff comes in late in the game but is still playing very much any other Russian gangster he’s appeared as before. Only Rachel Nichols seems a little out of place and very underused. Still, director Paco Cabezas manages to hold things together with a decent foot chase and a decent car chase as well as some gun-play thrown in for good measure. It’s just the overall story that feels tired and worn more than the stars themselves, well, save for that twist. Otherwise, just wait for a screening on cable. Rating 2 / 5
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