Shooting blocks
16 Blocks
dir. Richard Wenk; starring Bruce Willis, Mos Def, David Morse, Jena Stern, Casey Sander
It feels strange, at first, to watch Bruce Willis play a disillusioned, alcoholic New York policeman nearing retirement. He has an indiscreet pot belly, an unfl attering moustache, a limp and an uncanny pair of eyes that stare into a distant void. Despite his blatant fatigue, he decides to save an incurably talkative small-time criminal (Mos Def) named Eddie Bunker from the clutches of a whole section of the New York Police Department.
Considering that Bunker wants to testify against a hoard of dedicated but corrupt policemen, his journey down sixteen blocks of Manhattan, from the jailhouse to the courtroom between eight and ten in the morning is made somewhat tricky, and the idea that the only cop on his side is this aging alcoholic scarcely reassures him.
This is the sort of fi lm you’ve seen before • action-packed but tear-jerking entertainment, from gun shots to birthday cakes, from hostages to heart to heart chats about friendship and siblings. However, everything about it is spot-on for the genre. Willis’s performance is solidly convincing • tired but tough, angry but endearing • ironically contrasting with the stable heroes he has played in the past.
The chemistry between him and Mos Def is vibrant, Bunker’s often comic verbal diarrhoea and high-pitched ramblings playing up to Mosley’s sulky silence or gruff grunts. Mos Def’s character is equally endearing as viewers are not always quite sure if he’s a real criminal come clean, but his heart-warming descriptions of how he wants to open a bakery and meet his sister manage to avoid an excess of sentimentality, mostly due to his funny way of speaking and self reprobation.
16 Blocks rarely pretends to be a political fi lm or a criticism of the NYPD. It puts more emphasis on action and character development • although some of the portrayals of the mean cops are a little too stereotypical and at one point, the fi lm reverts to the age old unarmed civilians held hostage in a bus thing. Nevertheless, the plot unfolds neatly with a more or less unexpected but morally satisfying ending.
Neither eye-opening nor picturesque but a quick enough pace to make you sweat, and some sneaky peaks at New York City living • 16 Blocks is quite the buzzing get-tothe- point interactive type of film.
27th Apr 2006