Review of The Love Punch (2014) by Richard C — 27 Apr 2014

"I got a gun".

There are some films that you just know aren't going to be great. Whether its the characters or the premise it's evident from the get go. And as you can probably tell by now this is one for them.

However it does have one advantage and that's an excellent cast who are clearly having a good time making this film. It always creates some sense of fun. The film not be good, there may be story problems etc but a cast having fun can elevate things. It rubs off on the audience. 'The Love Punch' is about a divorced couple who lose their pension when Richard's (Pierce Brosnan) company gets run into the ground. Naturally angry they go in search of the company responsible and things get out of hand. They whole idea is a bit ridiculous, there's kidnapping, friends involved smuggling. It's ludicrous but still had some potential as a caper of stupid proportions unfortunately. It keeps itself in the realms of believable but because its poorly executed and sprinkles it with stupid things the balance isn't there.

As mentioned the cast are brilliant and are the films saving grace. 'Emma Thompson' never fails to be great in films, Pierce Brosnan', 'Timothy Spall', 'Celia Imrie' everyone gives it there all. The writing is weak, with the odd decent joke and scene. The problem is the characters aren't all that interesting. It's obvious where its going in the end which wouldn't be a problem if the build was good. It skips along at a stop and start pace it prioritises their relationships and the money in turns, stagnating both stories.

Most of it is poorly written, the odd good scene and decent joke as well as an impeccable cast were never going to save it fully. But there are far worse films. It's main problem is consistency - the pacing is up and down and it never gives enough time to either the couples relationships or the caper.