Review of Redbelt (2008) by John M — 23 Sep 2008
For a good thirty minutes, it's as fragmented as the lead character's front window. The director's stock players (Joe Mantegna, Ricky Jay, Rebecca Pidgeon) wander in carrying on two epithet-heavy conversations at once - "Let's financialise the problem" - and only Ejiofor, effortlessly deflecting audience disquiet, keeps us from throwing in the towel altogether.
What transpires, even with this half-hour handicap, is that the film keeps throwing us: it's Mamet's most audacious exercise in storytelling since "The Spanish Prisoner" a decade ago.
.. Heading towards the same arena as those old "Kickboxer" movies, with a hero whose idea of sensitivity around a rape victim is to creep up behind her with a knife, Mamet the macho looks to have gained the upper hand; but then Mamet the mindbender, the narrative magician, regains control, and the result's never quite what you'd expect.
Perhaps only a second viewing will determine "Redbelt"'s lasting quality; in the meantime, it's certainly one to enjoy grappling with.
This review of Redbelt (2008) was written by John M on 23 Sep 2008.
Redbelt has generally received positive reviews.
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