'Falcon Rising' was an attempt by Moonstone Entertainment to create a new action franchise. Revolving around ex-Marine John Chapman (Michael Jai White), it seems the original intent was to kickstart a whole series of films, but sadly it didn't quite work out that way. As of 2020, this remains the only entry and the sequel-teasing finale is mildly frustrating. Which is a real shame because in the right hands, it could have been a viable alternative to the 'Bourne' films, rather than a little-known one-off. Plus, the lead actor is one of the most consistently under-valued action stars in the business and it's about time he got that recognition.
Standing about seven feet tall and built like a Sherman tank, White has been kicking goons through walls for decades now. He'd probably be way more famous if his most heavily publicised film ('Spawn') wasn't terrible and his back catalogue does contain some duds, but he's always been a watchable and charismatic lead. Here, he plays a veteran suffering from PTSD who travels to Brazil after his aide-worker sister turns up near death in a Rio De Janeiro slum. From there, he hooks up with the local US Consular boss (who conveniently is an old army buddy) and starts digging his way round the favela, trying to find out what happened.
So far, so very predictable, however a couple of things mark this out from being a barrel-scraping 'Taken' knock-off. For one thing, it's remarkable how little violence there is for the first two thirds of the movie. Chapman works up a hefty body-count by the finale, but for a lot of the run time he's asking questions and following leads. It's far more procedural than you'd expect and while this is not 'Columbo' by any means, Chapman doesn't just axe-kick and torture his way to the end of film boss. He actually bothers to think and find out who they are.
Plus, Chapman is clearly not a well man. In the opening scene he's drunkenly playing Russian Roulette by himself, he suffers paranoia and in one moment, a backfiring car almost results in an unnecessary shoot out. The PTSD aspect isn't explored to its full potential, but there are definitely hints of something more significant going on here. Presumably this was meant to be expanded upon in the sequels, but as they were never made it's just a guess.
Action junkies might feel frustrated for some of the run time then but 'Falcon Rising' makes up for it in the finale. Having figured out who's responsible for his sister's misfortune, Chapman starts dishing out the pain. This leads to a decent brawl in a mansion and a climactic battle in a dockside warehouse. They wisely save the best to last, as the final face-off sees our towering hero battling three foes at once; a rock hard brawler, a capoeira expert and a shaven-headed Yakuza boss waving a razor sharp Katanna.
All of which means that 'Falcon Rising' is a promising start to a franchise that never was. White is reliably entertaining as always, the fight scenes land and while the plot is a bit formulaic, it's a relief that for once, they decide not to pull the "it was the Police Chief all along" twist. Neal McDonough ('Band Of Brothers,' 'Ravenous') plays the respectable ally in a nice suit and while he starts the film as a good guy, by the end...he still is! There's no pathetic attempt to pull the rug out with the laziest twist in cinema history and just for once, the boss doesn't betray the hero.
Standing about seven feet tall and built like a Sherman tank, White has been kicking goons through walls for decades now. He'd probably be way more famous if his most heavily publicised film ('Spawn') wasn't terrible and his back catalogue does contain some duds, but he's always been a watchable and charismatic lead. Here, he plays a veteran suffering from PTSD who travels to Brazil after his aide-worker sister turns up near death in a Rio De Janeiro slum. From there, he hooks up with the local US Consular boss (who conveniently is an old army buddy) and starts digging his way round the favela, trying to find out what happened.
So far, so very predictable, however a couple of things mark this out from being a barrel-scraping 'Taken' knock-off. For one thing, it's remarkable how little violence there is for the first two thirds of the movie. Chapman works up a hefty body-count by the finale, but for a lot of the run time he's asking questions and following leads. It's far more procedural than you'd expect and while this is not 'Columbo' by any means, Chapman doesn't just axe-kick and torture his way to the end of film boss. He actually bothers to think and find out who they are.
Plus, Chapman is clearly not a well man. In the opening scene he's drunkenly playing Russian Roulette by himself, he suffers paranoia and in one moment, a backfiring car almost results in an unnecessary shoot out. The PTSD aspect isn't explored to its full potential, but there are definitely hints of something more significant going on here. Presumably this was meant to be expanded upon in the sequels, but as they were never made it's just a guess.
Action junkies might feel frustrated for some of the run time then but 'Falcon Rising' makes up for it in the finale. Having figured out who's responsible for his sister's misfortune, Chapman starts dishing out the pain. This leads to a decent brawl in a mansion and a climactic battle in a dockside warehouse. They wisely save the best to last, as the final face-off sees our towering hero battling three foes at once; a rock hard brawler, a capoeira expert and a shaven-headed Yakuza boss waving a razor sharp Katanna.
All of which means that 'Falcon Rising' is a promising start to a franchise that never was. White is reliably entertaining as always, the fight scenes land and while the plot is a bit formulaic, it's a relief that for once, they decide not to pull the "it was the Police Chief all along" twist. Neal McDonough ('Band Of Brothers,' 'Ravenous') plays the respectable ally in a nice suit and while he starts the film as a good guy, by the end...he still is! There's no pathetic attempt to pull the rug out with the laziest twist in cinema history and just for once, the boss doesn't betray the hero.