The Liquidator DVD Review

Director: Akan Satayev

Cast: Aitzhanov Berik, Aziz Beyshenaliev, Vinnie Jones, Karlygash Mukhamedzhanova.

Running time: 94 Minutes

Certificate: 18

Extras: None

When our very own legendary Editor-in-Chief, Mr Tom Fordy, says to me, ‘Hey Craig, fancy reviewing Vinnie Jones’ latest?’ through gritted teeth, this writer responds  ‘Of course, send it my way, I’d love to.’ To say I wasn’t looking forward to it, would be an understatement – a viewing experience that would surely be akin to sitting in a dentist’s chair and having a root canal performed. Expecting another straight-to-DVD atrocity, even the title – THE LIQUIDATOR – didn’t bode well. Would his rent-a-thug be appearing alongside ’50 Cent’…again?- or worse (is there anyone worse? Silly question, of course there’s not! Well maybe Chris Tucker. NO, definitely Chris Tucker, sorry ‘Fiddy’)

As the disc was inserted and the film began, I found myself confused, mystified and a little taken aback. ‘Commissioned by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Kazakhstan’ read the title page before charging straight into the dramatic set-up, without any opening credits. Yes you read that right, dramatic. Not only that but THE LIQUIDATOR is a Kazakhstan language film (which almost at the halfway point, I was beginning to think Mr Fordy had played a practical joke or at least sent the wrong disc), with constant subtitles running throughout. ‘Nothing wrong with that,’ I hear you say, and you’re absolutely right. But hard man Jones was nowhere to be seen (nothing wrong with that either), despite him being emblazoned on the DVD cover. Add to the fact this was bloody good – and Jones doesn’t do good (unless used sparingly by Guy Ritchie).

Now to get this straight, the former footballer (which Jones never was in my opinion) does indeed pop-up. His total screen time amounts to less than four minutes (showing up around the 43 minute mark). His role is that of a grunting assassin, referred to as ‘The Mute’, which tells you just how much faith the filmmakers had in his acting abilities. Obviously they’d seen Brett Ratner’s X-MEN: THE LAST STAND.

THE LIQUIDATOR sees Aitzhanov Berik as skilled bodyguard Arsen, who works for an unknown shady organisation. After hearing the devastating news that his journalist brother has been murdered, he returns home for the funeral… and of course, to find those responsible. Berik is pretty damn exceptional in this, as is Aziz Beyshenaliev as the level-headed, sympathetic cop, always one step behind Berik’s trail of destruction. He dispatches each villain until he reaches those at the top of the chain, and is aided by an all-knowing ‘duo’ – they mysteriously turn up after each confrontation with info on his next target.

The action comes thick and fast, along with some impressive car chases thrown in for good measure. This is also the film’s major flaw, as the plot’s pacing is a little too fast, leaving all other characters as one dimensional and insignificant. However, the film has quite a few nifty twists and turns, and some of the characters deserved to play a bigger role.

If you’re expecting some outlandish stunts and martial-arts ass-kicking, you may be a touch disappointed. The fight scenes are brutal, mostly close contact, hand-to-hand stuff; but it works brilliantly for the story. It doesn’t get bogged down or sidetracked by trying to impress with some ‘amazing wire-work’ or gravity-defying camera tricks. If anything, Berik’s skill is similar to Steven Segal’s early work (there’s a complement in there somewhere, I promise). The shooting style also feels gritty, as if you’re in amongst the action unfolding, handheld and often over the shoulder shots.

This revenge-fuelled actioner – as you can imagine from the plot description – shares similarities with 1970s crime classic GET CARTER, as well as the more recent, brilliant Australian thriller THE HORSEMAN, although it comes nowhere close to either. Another ‘man on a mission’ flick, but one whose main protagonist, while searching for answers, uncovers deep-seated secrets about all those involved, including himself… Without the two outstanding central performances, THE LIQUIDATOR would have amounted to the general run-of-the-mill action efforts, usually churned out so often in the Hollywood.

However, this is impressive stuff from a country not known for producing Hollywood-like entertainment, with a twist ending even cheeky enough to set up a possible sequel.

   THE LIQUIDATOR is released on DVD on the 18th June.