Review of Brick Mansions (2014) by Aaron D — 23 Apr 2014

I was excited to have the opportunity to see an advanced screening of this last night. Based on the previews, I knew I was in for a silly action movie, but the silliness here is off the charts. Think Rumble in the Bronx meets Escape from New York.

The film is by no means boring, and it's harmless with a runtime of only 90 minutes or so, but Brick Mansions features some of the worst acting (Belle, RZA) and dialogue I have ever seen. There are countless roll-your-eyes moments whether it's because of the implausible action (Paul Walker handcuffed to a steering wheel, so he just rips off the steering wheel, or where while riding on top of a police transport vehicle, Walker's character is able to remove the officer riding shotgun through the window with one hand and putting very little effort into it.) or the corniest of one-liners (most of RZA's dialogue is either poorly executed or impossible to understand).

I can suspend disbelief for a Fast and the Furious film because it's executed well and has a solid cast, but Brick Mansions was asking too much of me. The film also features one of the corniest endings you will ever see, and based on the laughter from the audience (not intentional), I think they agreed with me.

I'm pretty sure this was meant for a straight to video release, and the studio opted to cash in on Paul Walker's final film. As a straight to video release, I think I would have been pleasantly surprised, but I wouldn't recommend planning your Friday night around this film at the theater.