3 Days To Kill

3 Days To Kill - Dir. McG (2014)

Luc Besson is partially responsible for Liam Neeson’s renaissance as an action hero. Now, the prolific French auteur has turned his sights on another aging screen idol in Kevin Costner. Besson serves as writer and producer on 3 Days to Kill while handing over directorial duties to the modern day Renny Harlin, McG.

Costner is CIA agent Ethan Renner, who just recently transferred to Paris to repair his estranged relationship with his ex-wife Christine (Connie Nielsen) and their daughter Zoey (Hailee Steinfeld). An assignment goes tragically wrong when Renner and his team are tasked with taking down the Albino (Tomas Lemarquis), a lieutenant in an organization led by the mysterious Wolf (Richard Sammel). Several agents are killed, a hotel explodes, and the Albino escapes when Ethan collapses in the street.

Doctors alert Ethan that he has an inoperable brain tumor and only has a few months to live. He wishes to spend what little time he has left with reconnecting with Zoey, who isn’t too eager to be with her formerly absentee father. Ethan is soon given an offer he cannot refuse. Vivi (Amber Heard) has been sent by her CIA handlers to kill the Wolf and offers Ethan an experimental serum that can extend his life in exchange for his assistance.

The script by Besson and Adi Hasak is overstuffed with subplots and scattershot in tone. 3 Days to Kill floats between being an action flick, a comedy, and a maudlin drama. In addition to Ethan’s troubles with terrorists and a rebellious daughter, he’s also got a family of Malian squatters in his apartment leading to some cutesy scenes between Costner and a little boy asking for high fives. Amber Heard appears as the femme fatale with an all-too convenient panacea. There’s really nothing to her character aside from a blatantly salacious scene where Ethan meets Vivi while she receives a private show with a stripper. Hailee Steinfeld is good, but you wish she had followed up her big debut in True Grit with movies on a similar level. The action itself isn’t memorable at all and the villains are just generic Euro-trash.

Costner’s sheer presence is the one thing that binds the mish-mash of Besson’s disparate ideas together. He doesn’t possess the physically imposing stature of Neeson, but he conveys the same world weariness with the folksy charm seen in Field of Dreams. When Costner rescues his daughter from would-be rapists and carries her off in his arms, you half-expect the soundtrack to start blaring Whitney Houston.

Costner’s performance is enough to save 3 Days to Kill from being a complete dud, but it’s certainly not enough to recommend.

Rating: ** (*****)

The Company Men

The Company Men - Dir. John Wells (2010)

Hollywood loves making movies with a message and the country’s economic collapse and slow recovery has been a hot-button topic. Two of the best films on the subject have been Up in the Air and Charles Ferguson’s fascinating documentary Inside Job, The Company Men doesn’t match their quality, but it is the most star-studded affair. This is a film that fits into the category of hyperlink cinema, a term coined by Film Comment’s Alissa Quart. Hyperlink cinema refers to a movie featuring multiple protagonists and interconnected storylines. Crash, Babel, and Traffic are a few of the more notable entries in the genre. Thankfully, The Company Men isn’t as heavy handed though it does suffer from being an utterly dry drama.

The Company Men takes place during the cusp of the financial crisis and revolves around GTX, a former shipbuilding concern which eventually grew into a powerhouse conglomerate. CEO James Salinger (Craig T. Nelson) makes the decision to shut down factories and initiate massive layoffs. It’s not just the blue-collar joes who lose their jobs, but the middle management guys as well.

Bobby Walker (Ben Affleck) is the first to feel the mighty axe of downsizing. He refuses to give up the trappings of his affluent lifestyle, desperate to maintain a semblance of success. Bobby continues golfing at the country club and driving around in a Porsche he can no longer afford. He’s also too proud to except any position that doesn’t come with a six-figure salary attached to it. Months pass by as Bobby remains unemployed and begins questioning his own self-worth, despite the unwavering support of his loving wife, Maggie (Rosemarie DeWitt). Bobby eventually swallows his pride and takes a construction job with his brother-in-law, Jack (Kevin Costner with an iffy Boston accent).

Phil Woodward (Chris Cooper) has been with GTX since the beginning, working his way up from a welder to a suit and tie position. His career was his life and he has no idea how to fill the hours of the day anymore. Phil also realizes he’s too old to go job hunting and that any lucrative openings will go to much younger candidates. With mortgage payments and a daughter (played by Steven Spielberg’s daughter, Sasha) going off to college, Phil finds his situation growing more grave.

Gene McClary (Tommy Lee Jones) founded the company with Salinger and served as mentor and friend to Bobby and Phil. Through this latest downturn, the conscientious Gene has watched his best friend turn towards the dark side. His heart breaks as those around him concern themselves more about maximizing shareholder profits than they do about the lives that have been shattered. Thousands are unable to support their families while the company turns around and buys a swanky high-rise in downtown Chicago to be their new headquarters.

The cast also includes Maria Bello as the human resources exec in charge of the layoffs and Eamonn Walker as a sympathetic job seeker Bobby befriends.

The Company Men was written and directed by John Wells, a showrunner for acclaimed television programs such as ER, The West Wing, and Third Watch. This is Wells’ debut as a feature film director and he has a great support system with a solid cast and the amazing Roger Deakins as cinematographer. Deakins gives the film a slick look and there are several striking shots. One of them finds Phil looking forlorn amidst rows upon rows of empty cubicles. A slow realization dawns on him that he is the last employee left on his floor. As a former member of the West Wing staff, Wells throws in the requisite walking and talking tracking shot. On the whole, Wells’ direction is fairly straightforward as is his script. The Company Men deals with the economy in a blunt manner. The audience never has to guess what's on the characters' minds because they will spell it out for you.

The film also asks a lot in requesting viewers to sympathize with white-collar executives. Ben Affleck, who excels at playing a jerk, plays another jerk here. It's hard to feel bad for someone when their biggest troubles involve delinquent payments to the country club and not being able to afford his kid's X-Box. There's more empathy to be found with Chris Cooper and Tommy Lee Jones. It's a testament to both actors who carry a potent amount of gravitas whenever they appear on screen. Jones and Cooper don't have to try hard to portray soulful and world-weary.

The rich have it bad too. At least, that's the message some may take away from The Company Men, a dull drama ripped from today's headlines. The Company Men isn't a particularly bad film. It's well-shot and technically sound. The performances by the ensemble cast are fine, but they aren't anything new. How many times have we seen Tommy Lee Jones play the sullen old timer? In the end, The Company Men offers no fresh insight into the problems plaguing this nation.

Rating: ** (*****)