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Michael Davis' Shoot 'Em Up

by Chris Flippo
09/07/2007

I finished watching Shoot 'Em Up almost twenty minutes ago, and my mind is still reeling. This is a film that waves goodbye to good taste and takes sex and violence to such an extreme level that it leaves gratuity behind and reaches a kind of surrealism. Ten minutes into the film, our hero delivers a baby and then proceeds to shoot off the umbilical cord. See what I mean?

One night, Mr. Smith (Clive Owen) is sitting at a bus stop, minding his own business and snacking on carrots. After seeing a pregnant woman pursued by mysterious gunmen (is there any other kind?), Mr. Smith decides to intervene. He is able to deliver the baby and kill the Bad Guys, but is unable to protect the woman. Now, with baby in tow, Mr. Smith must understand why Mr. Hertz (Paul Giamatti) is after the child.

To go any further is unnecessary, since the plot is really more of an excuse to deliver some ridiculous action scenes and, trust me, you’ll get your money’s worth. This is the type of movie that thinks a sex scene is not enough... it has to occur during a gun fight. Our hero can’t just deliver a baby... he has to deliver the kid during a gun fight. Come to think of it, I’m pretty sure most everything that happens in Shoot 'Em Up happens during a gunfight. If I get to see a Shoot 'Em Up 2, maybe Mr. Smith can wash his car and brush his teeth... during a gunfight.

However, the film is better than most genre pictures that are made today. Probably what elevates it is the acting. We’re not talking Jean Claude Van-Damme here. We’re talking about Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti, two actors who have been in two of my favorite pictures from the last few years (Children of Men and Sideways). They lend their characters a surprising amount of gravity, which is a real accomplishment, considering this is a live-action Bugs Bunny/ Elmer Fudd cartoon (this probably explains the carrots).

But don't get me wrong. Scenery-chewing, along with violence, is the cornerstone of a good genre picture. Hell, Paul Giamatti probably took the leftover scenery home for lunch tomorrow. However, unlike Kurt Russell in the recent Death Proof, nobody makes the fatal mistake of winking at the camera. Everyone here plays it absolutely straight, which makes the picture work as well as it does.

Of course, writing a review of this film puts me into a tricky position. This is not a picture for everybody, but it is everything you would expect from a movie called Shoot 'Em Up. Nothing less, but maybe a little bit more. I’m not giving the film a favorable review because of its sex and violence. I’m giving it the positive review because the movie is made with considerable style and wit, which is always something I enjoy, no matter the genre.

At this point, I’m not sure if the movie is dumb cinema or a strange tip of the hat to dumb cinema. Either way, it’s a blast and is sure to get plenty of play on the cult movie scene. My advice? If you’re looking for a deep character study, look elsewhere. However, if you’re looking for something that isn’t so high-brow, I recommend this one. With a title like Shoot 'Em Up, you know what the filmmakers are going to do, and with this one, they do it rather well... and during a gunfight.

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