Review
Michael Biehn and Jennifer Blanc-Biehn star in this old-school Grindhouse flick about two girls who get into a lot of trouble with some local cops.
First of all let me just say that Michael Biehn is a complete legend in the action genre. From The Terminator to Aliens, Tombstone and The Rock; He has been in some of the best action films of all time. He has always been one of my favourite actors as he brings a genuine intensity to every role. He’s the kind of actor who you never think he’s acting, he IS the character. In fact, I think I’ll do a “Legends of Action” blog about him soon; but I digress, let’s talk about The Victim.
The Victim is a low budget Grindhouse/Exploitation flick, the like of which we haven’t seen for a long time. Written and directed by Michael Biehn, it has that gritty feel I love about older movies and is a refreshing change of pace from all the family fare we’re subjected to these days. There’s more sex in this film than I’ve seen in a long time; it’s so nice to watch an Un-PC film where the cast all appear to be having a ball.
Biehn is fantastic as always as the mysterious Kyle (which I’m sure isn’t a reference to that other film he’s quite well known for). Although he seems like a nice guy in a bad situation, there is something about him that just niggles with you. Who is he and why is he living in the middle of nowhere?
Jennifer Blanc-Biehn (Annie) and Danielle Harris (Mary) also star as two strippers who get mixed up with some corrupt cops and their “party” goes awry. Harris’ character Mary is accidentally killed by the two cops and Annie runs off into the woods as the cops give chase. The film opens with Annie arriving at Kyle’s cabin and begging for help and the story is told through a series of flashbacks and forwards.
The acting in general is strong especially from the leads (Michael, Danielle and Jennifer) but the thing which really stands out is the music; the score and the songs are fantastic and really add to the atmosphere of the film. The opening credits do however, bare a stunning resemblance to the movie “Seven”.
Michael and Jennifer have great on-screen chemistry and you can tell they’re a couple in real life; they’d have to be after that sex scene (whew!).
My favourite thing about the movie is the ending which was frankly hilarious. Although I saw it coming, I loved it!
It’s not really an action movie but I knew that going in; there is however a great fight at the end between Kyle and one of the cops which is really tense.
Overall, The Victim deserves respect for doing so much with such a limited budget; it’s a story about how you can be the victim of your own life by making silly decisions. A great directorial debut from one of my favourite actors and I look forward to seeing what he does next. Just don’t watch this movie with your mom…
YOU CAN BUY “THE VICTIM” ON BLU RAY/DVD OVER AT AMAZON BY CLICKING BELOW.
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