DVD review – Action candy floss

DVD: Haywire
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Featuring: Gina Carano, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor and Channing Tatum
Rating: 3/5

Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh has a way with ensemble casts and blurry plot lines.

Remember Contagion? One of the stars in this action thriller, Ewan McGregor, was also in that one.

This time around, Soderbergh introduces us to Gina Carano, an ass-kicking brunette with a banging body and a dark heart. An Angelina Jolie Lite if you will.

But then again, if you know Carano is, in real life, a mixed martial arts (MMA) superstar, you wouldn’t dare say that to her face.

In her lead movie debut, she is Mallory Kane, a black-ops agent for a security contractor working for the government. When she rescues a Chinese dissident reporter on a mission in Barcelona, things start going awry for her and she is left to fight for her life – and avenge her name.

Most of this movie reminded me of Jolie’s Wanted; but unlike that film I wasn’t always on board with the storyline on this one.

There was a lot of “Did you know about Barcelona?” and “What happened in Barcelona…” dialogue, which made very little sense. Don’t be surprised if you still don’t get what happened in Barcelona after the credits start rolling.

This is popcorn fodder not designed to stimulate your mind in any way. The action is relentless and almost erotic in its silent fervour, punctuated with grunts and breaking furniture.

You’ll definitely want bathroom breaks during the dialogue parts, but those never last for more than a couple of minutes before it’s back to breaking bones and shooting guns.