Ella-May O'Brien
Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
Paynbob
It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.
Lisa Mihajic
Maybe it's a cultural thing, but I found the supporting characters were very well-acted. As a Canadian, I don't expect my real-life bad-guys to be confident and compelling. Rather, it is clear that Rook is trying *really* hard to impress his dad, and is trying to show off to Mike about what a tough guy he can be because, below the shallow facade he presents to the world, he's afraid: afraid of not living up to his father's standards, afraid of being called out as a coward (that's why he bullies Mike: to maintain that alpha male status he's yearning for), scared of showing mercy for fear of retribution, etc. The character's name is telling: his parents are clearly training him to be a powerful heir to their fledgling drug empire, and though he proves to be a little stronger and a little smarter than a mere pawn, his attempt to keep Mike (the real pawn, it seems) in check results in him simply destroying him, leaving Rook no closer at winning the game. In retrospect, I wish the characters were more fleshed out, but the movie's run time would not allow for that. Maybe it tries to do too much in too little time. I found that Mr Slater's priest character did little to move the plot along, and his sparse relationship with the hero combined with our limited knowledge of his intriguing past makes it difficult for the audience to form an emotional connection with him. And what about Rachel? I'm curious as to how she came to be an important element in John's life, i.e. how did he interest her enough for her to try to date him, and how long has she been trying to permeate his emotional barriers? I feel as if a whole novel could be based around this movie, with all the details I wish had been revealed.
Llewellyn Francis
I try to avoid reading reviews before watching a movie but this time I thought I'd do the opposite. A mixed bag of reviews didn't help so I watched it. Wooden acting, poor script, forced dialogue, no chemistry between any of the actors and that kid who played the little girl was sooooo bad but maybe not all her fault. No indication of where the movie is set unless you recognise the CN Tower, which tells you it's Toronto.It took a long time to build up to any sort of action and the climatic end was a bit of a damp squib, and they all looked like they couldn't wait to be shot! Too many glaring errors from start to finish but the most obvious is when Cuba is shot in his left shoulder. A few minutes later, he meet the drug boss and......the bullet hole in his jacket his gone! Even worse, when his jacket is removed, the left sleeve has no hole or blood and he can lift his left hand without any sign of pain.I guess miracles do happen as when they arrive at the church, his left sleeve and his hand and fingers are covered in blood!It's a shame to see someone of Cuba's calibre drown in such dross. An Oscar winning actor reduced to acting with people who are not even worthy of being called amateurs. IMO - Jerry Maguire, Outbreak and Men of Honor were his three best and last ever decent films he made. I hope the tide turns for him...and soon.
susan boyle
The whole idea/storyline is unoriginal and screams 'Foxtel cop show', The acting at the beginning of the film was about as convincing as the acting in a porn movie. Cuba Gooding Jr's performance gained momentum as the movie progressed, however his character was not memorable, though that was probably due to a bad script. As for Christian Slater, he was foolishly cast as a priest, for which he gave a weak performance where he came off as uninterested and far too smug, with a different script it might have been slightly funny, but as this is a serious movie I doubt that was the intended affect. As for the characters from the drug-ring, they were painfully stereotypical. If each character from the film had been made just a touch more clichéd, and with an edited script, it could be a satirical comedy. All in all a predictable and unmemorable movie that smacks of childishness despite it's large amount of curse words and sexual references.
Bob_the_Hobo
Sacrifice keeps the Cuba Gooding Jr. straight to video train rolling, and this time reunites him with Christian Slater (they starred in the action-comedy Lies & Illusions). As a fan of Mr. Gooding Jr., I watched Sacrifice with a smile; I liked the cast, I liked the plot, and I ended up liking the movie.A narco cop (Cuba) lost his wife and daughter to what I assume was a gangster he put behind bars. Now grief-stricken, Cuba is a mess of a man and his friend and ally Priest (Slater) can't even help him. Simultaneously, a young man pulled into the drug running business (Devon Bostick) wants out. As a last stand against his bosses Bostick hides a Virgin Mary statue made of heroin in a church (Slater's church), and runs away with his little sister. Cuba is called into the investigation and the action starts.I liked it. The first half drags, but the rest of the film really makes up for it. The story is interesting, and despite not being too original, it kept my interest and I found several gimmicks to be clever. The action was good, the ending scene was fantastic.Cuba makes a great hero here. He's not in it much for the first half, but it's his movie for the rest of the film. He pulls off badassery in spades. Slater isn't in this much either, but he has a couple of monologues and then the end scene, a shoot-em-up in his church, that he was great in. Kim Coates is marketed in the trailer as the main villain but he's not. Regardless, his scenes are fantastic and he more than holds his own with Cuba and Slater. Devon Bostick isn't memorable but he's alright. The other villains are really, really bad actors and made me root for Cuba Gooding Jr. even more.A good popcorn and soda action movie for a lazy day off. Enjoy.
