Rating
Summary
I have to say I am disappointed with 12 Rounds: Reloaded; I wanted to love it and was hoping for a movie as fun as the first but it just lacked the energy and action of the first movie, making it ultimately forgettable. It is worth watching for the bad guy though who is a little different from usual.
Plot: Nick Malloy portrays an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) who finds himself caught in a deadly 12-round game of cat and mouse with a vigilante tied to the paramedic’s past. With little time to spare and his wife’s life hanging in the balance, the EMT must figure out why he’s been chosen to be the pawn in this maniac’s game before it’s too late.
Review: I’m one of the few people who actually enjoyed the first 12 Rounds starring John Cena; sure, it was a rip-ff of Die Hard with a Vengeance but it had some great action and was well paced.
Alas, this follow up isn’t quite as fun;12 Rounds: Reloaded stars WWE star Randy Orton who is a decent enough action star but he lacks charisma and personality to be truly memorable.
It also has a much smaller budget than the first movie and lacks any truly great action. It moved along well though and the story was interesting too.
The best thing about it was the villain, played by Brian Markinson, a man so overwhelmed with grief that he will create his own kind of justice on those he deems responsible.
I did find though that despite his tragedy he was just too much of a nut job to sympathize with. He clearly must have had a screw loose before the “incident” happened because his motivation is pretty hard to swallow. But hey, this is an action movie so logic doesn’t matter.
The character of Tommy is a guy who has had his ass saved by his father too many times and takes no responsibility for his actions. He’s a bit of a prick and yet he still has some good lines and the way his story climaxes is rather cool.
I am a big fan of the director Roel Reine who directed the awesome Death Race prequels so it’s a shame this isn’t as good. Pretty much the entire movie is shot at night so it’s difficult to see what is happening sometimes.
The score by Nathan Furst (Act of Valor) is excellent though and really pounds along with the action.
Overall, I have to say I am disappointed with 12 Rounds: Reloaded; I wanted to love it and was hoping for a movie as fun as the first but it just lacked the energy and action of the first movie, making it ultimately forgettable. It is worth watching for the bad guy though who is a little different from usual.
