Give ’em Hell, Malone [2009]

February 17, 2010

When the title of the movie is Give ’em Hell, Malone you pretty much know it’s going to be a stylish action extravaganza. Something we’ve already seen in Shoot ’em Up, starring Clive Owen. It would seem that the key thing is to have that ’em in the title of the movie. There is, however, one big difference between these two movies and that’s the noir vibe that Malone features. Thomas Jane seems to be a fan of the genre (Dark Country, Mutant Chronicles, The Expanse series) and he gives one hell of a performance.

He’s got that rugged detective look nailed down ever since he starred in The Punisher. The first few minutes of Give ’em Hell, Malone were just a bloody beautiful mess. You can already guess what’s the story like. Malone is this hard-boiled ex-private eye who’s now working as a gun for hire. Of course, he narrates the whole fucking thing with his hoarse voice between sips of whiskey. The opening scenes set up the mood perfectly for what’s about to follow. Although I must admit that the movie surprised me a bit.

I was expecting non-stop action and a flimsy story. And while the story was a bit flimsy, there wasn’t much action. The entire thing feels like a budget version of Sin City with cartoonish characters. Still, if you’re looking for something entertaining that requires little brain power, you’re in luck because Give ’em Hell, Malone is exactly that type of movie. And you can always try to make sense of a bit too convoluted story that starts making sense only towards the end.

Welcome to hell on Earth, a small hotel that’s currently going through major renovations. It’s occupied by a dwindling number of mobsters who keep getting killed by one man, Malone. You see, Malone was hired to retrieve a certain briefcase from this hotel but he suspects that someone actually wanted him dead. They didn’t believe that a human being could survive such a brutal shootout. However, they didn’t know that Malone is a tough son of a bitch. And he’s onto to them.

Whenever someone starts talking about John Wick I just point them to Give ’em Hell, Malone. It features sleek cinematography, impressive and graphic shootouts, and pretty good sets. And I loved those slow-motion shots of bullets just wreaking havoc, something you rarely see nowadays. Ahhh, those Wanted days are long gone I guess.

Everything about it is stylish and cool. So, even the cars are a blend of these beautiful oldtimers. For example, the car that Thomas Jane as Malone is driving is a 1952 Chop Top Buick Straight 8. The same goes for the arsenal and especially Malone’s guns.

With a budget of $15 million, this movie is punching way above its weight. And one of the reasons why is the director Russel Mulcahy. He’s the same guy who directed some pretty great and more importantly, authentic movies like Resurrection, The Shadow, and Ricochet. Although he was also behind The Glorious Insanity That is Highlander II: The Quickening.