John Rain kills people for a living. Half American and half
Japanese, but out of place in both worlds, Rain is not a good man, but he is
good at what he does. He’s not so hot with women, though - bit of a soft touch if
you ask me. Doesn’t like to kill them either, probably not even the bad ones.
He’s a very busy man, which explains why he doesn’t watch a lot of
movies. If he did, he would know that you never get ‘groin-y’ with the
daughter of a man you just killed. No matter how
beautiful she is. Now Rain must prevent the girl from becoming collateral
damage, but that’s what happens when you think with your heart and not your
head. Based on the novel by author
Barry Eisler, Max Mannix’s (Dance of the Dragon) 2009 thriller marks the first
cinematic adventure of freelance assassin John Rain.
The central
plot finds the CIA and Yakuza trying to get their hands on a USB stick that
contains extremely sensitive information. The kind of information that would
leave the Japanese government exposed to outside interference. Trousers,
ankles, that kind of thing. Naturally, the CIA and Yakuza are very keen to
retrieve said information and blackmail the Japanese government for all its
worth. The only problem is, a mysterious assassin keeps getting in the way, and
nobody really seems to know what his involvement is. Or rather, those that do
are keeping their cards very close to their chests.
I don’t really ‘do’
books, so I’m coming at this from the cold. Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight)
provides Hollywood acting muscle as CIA chief Holtzer, and Kippei Shiina stars
as the invisible assassin Rain. Will Max Mannix’s latest keep you from stepping
outside with its heavy shower of corruption, double-cross and action, or will
this moody political thriller simply rain on your parade? Better put that
umbrella on standby. It’s a game of cat and mouse for the most part, but
fortunately Rain Fall comes with a solid turn from Jerry, and an ever-reliable
performance from Tom.
Gary Oldman is
guilty of overacting at times, but did you really expect anything less? It’s
all in the name of entertainment. He screams, he shouts, he eats up the screen, and steals virtually every scene he’s in. We’re not talking Leon standards
here; even Gary looks like he’s only there to pick up the paycheck at times,
but you can always rely on Mr Oldman to keep a tired storyline moving. Shiina’s
performance makes for the perfect counterbalance, successfully tapping into the
menace and restraint of a hired killer. He talks quietly, calmly and
infrequently, but he’s always in control. Convincing in the lead role, Shiina's never quite the hero, but certainly less corrupt than the people around
him, giving us a character we can root for.
If you’re a fan of
action pictures then you might want to reconsider, there isn’t a lot of gunplay
to speak of, and even though John Rain is a highly trained martial artist, he
never resorts to Donnie Yen style ass-kickery to get things done. We’re in
Bourne territory here, with focus very much on quick fire hand-to-hand combat
and fast editing. Mannix handles these scenes competently enough but they are
few and far between; the film moves at a slow and deliberate pace that will
leave action junkies out in the cold. The thriller aspect is very pedestrian as
well, and there’s nothing here that we haven’t seen before. Max Mannix seems
incapable of ending his movie at the appropriate moment, dragging proceedings
way past the point of breaking.
His directional
skills can’t be faulted but his pacing is a little off at times, and I found my
mind wandering on several occasions, probably wondering where I’d put that damn
umbrella. Throwing a lick of romance into the mix may seem compulsory, but the
chemistry is found wanting. It probably worked better in the book, but for me
the blossoming relationship slowed down a relaxed running time even further.
Rain Fall is the
dictionary definition of workmanlike. Unspectacular, undemanding fodder that
entertains in small doses but rarely threatens the likes of Bourne and co. Two
effective lead turns help to raise its profile, but the subsequent downpour
only serves to dampen the spirit. It’s hard to resist ending on the line ‘it
never rains but it pours’, but Rain Fall really did leave me out in the cold.
It’s a good job I brought that umbrella with me after all… AW
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