Rating: 6/10
Review date: October 17, 2003
A “retrieval expert” decided to do one last job for his boss, Billy Walker, before he retires to open a restaurant. This led him to the jungles of Brazil where he is supposed to retrieve Billy’s son, Travis, who is looking for a gold idol. The matter was further complicated when Hatcher, investor of a nearby mining town, tries to get the treasure himself…
The Rundown is a nice movie that certainly tickles my stomach although not to the extent of making me laugh. The movie itself is quite imbalanced with some parts being really hilarious and some parts failing to do so (this could have been a matter of taste).
It also features some colorful backgrounds and nice environments which are quite bright thus making it very suitable to the movie’s mood.
The action is alright unless you’re a fan of the Rock where you can see some of his trademark moves in one of the earlier fight scenes. It does seem as if the filmmakers like whips (as shown in the trailer) because there are a few scenes involving whips which make them interesting to watch.
The Rock is perfectly cast as Beck, proving that he is the next rising action star, following the footsteps of Sylvester Stallone and more closely, the recently elected governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger. He has the right amount of charm and humor for this type of role while showing that he has what it takes to be an action star.
Seann William Scott as Travis Walker is generally funny at time although I do find him annoying occasionally but this might be caused by the dialogue. He acted pretty badly in Bulletproof Monk which opens earlier this year but American Wedding kind of negates that image.
Rosario Dawson as Marianna offer a weak performance followed by Christopher Walken as the greedy local head honcho. I expected something more from both of them (especially Walken) but am not really surprised that they didn’t deliver considering the nature of this film.
The Rundown might have benefited from a better title although it doesn’t really affect the end product. Director Peter Berg was able to integrate the comedy and action elements well but it feels lacking in some parts in this otherwise entertaining movie. The Rock definitely performed better than he was in The Scorpion King and I will be looking forward to his future projects.
*Trivia*
The original title of this movie was “Helldorado” before it was changed to “Welcome to the Jungle”. Eventually they chose “The Rundown”.
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cameo was completely unprepared. He came onto the set one day and was asked to make a quick appearance. Don’t blink or you might miss him.
Memorable quote: “Do I look like Santa Claus to you?”
-Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as Beck-
(c) Martin Taidy