Review of Big Game (2014) by Dawdlingpoet — 23 Nov 2021

This is an action adventure film, with themes present including time bombs, airlifts, deception and murder. There are some subtitles present towards the start of the film, unsurprisingly as the film is set in Finland. I found some of the dialogue to be a little mumbled and hard to follow entirely, which was a bit off-putting. The plot is pretty unbelievable, although it is definitely entertaining regardless. There were some quite amusing moments, with the President forced to do some strange things due to the situation he finds himself in. It is very much an escapist piece of film. I liked the idea of Samuel L Jackson being the President - that in itself was kind of cool but don't be expecting the whole plot to make complete and utter sense and for all the i's and t's to be fully dotted, so to speak.

There is an almost camp feel to it in parts but I suppose its all part of the fun. As far as the special effects are concerned, their not really bad quality but I did find some instances a bit hard to believe - there again, thats more likely down to the plot details, rather than the actual visual quality of said effects. I found it surprisingly amusing, not just due to the plot but also via some of the dialogue, with Mr. President telling young Oskari some personal tales of his own while they sit in front of a fire. Bizarre and unlikely? yes, entertaining and amusing? yes, definitely.

Cast wise, as I say Samuel L Jackson plays the US President, William Alan Moore. I found his somewhat unsure, slightly stumbly at times nature to be a bit hard to believe, although Jackson is also his more smooth and slick persona at other times. I can report there is at least one 'aw hell no!'. The young hunter/adventurer boy Oskari is played by Onni Tommila. He shows his emotions quite well and I found myself wishing the best for him. If I had to make a comparison, I suppose (at a bit of a stretch) you could say that Oskari is a bit of a Mowgli type character, only instead of living in the jungle, obviously, he lives in the mountains. I also found it both ironic and amusing that he seeemed to be the one giving advice to the President! other characters include Morris, played by Ray Stevenson, the VP (Vice President) played by Victor Garber and the CIA Director, played by Felicity Huffman.

Content wise, the film contains some instances of moderate violence, including gunshots and gunfire. There is no sexual content and some strong language and there is a fair sense of threat present for most of the film, with music in the background indicating that anything could happen at any time, so it may be somewhat frightening to young viewers. The film has been given a 15 rating in the UK.

Yes I'd recommend this film, as I found it to be quite amusing and entertaining. It has a good cast and it did well at making me feel tense - plus the visual special effects aren't too bad either.