Blazing Guns, Tough Guys, and Weird Sort-Of Robot Dancing by That Dexter Guy.

Gamer

Directed By: Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor

Starring: Gerard Butler, Amber Valletta, Michael C. Hall, Kyra Sedgwick

Rated: R

1 hrs. 35 min.

Death row inmates participate in a live action video game. 30 games and they are free. Guess who is dangerously close to 30? Kable (Gerard Butler). Not only are they in real life war situations with explosions going off around them and guns a-blazing, but they are controlled, through new neuro-technology developed by Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall), by outside gamers. In Kable's case, its a 17 year old rich kid. Kable wants the kid to cut him free so he can control himself and find his wife and child in the outside world. Is he able to do it?

The plot is engaging (for the most part) and the action is fun. Gamer has everything you expect from your typical action film: tough guy, guns, explosions, car chases, random nudity and sexuality that has nothing to do with the central plot. However, the plot thins out the closer to the end of the film and the ending comes to quickly and easily.

By far one of the best things about this film: Michael C. Hall. He steals the scenes he is in, and plays an amusing villain who you actually like. Plus in one scene he shows off a few moves while controlling some semi-minions in a sort of dancing/fight (no, not in a Jets/Sharks kind of way, don't worry).

So while it isn't the best thinker's film, stuff gets blown up, there's lots of cool action, and Butler is a tough action hero you can actually stand and who you actually hope succeeds in getting what he wants.

Grade: B -