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Not bad, not bad. I like it when I go into a movie expecting fair at best and then have the experience be so much better than expected. That is the deal with 16 Blocks; the new Richard Donner directed cop drama with Bruce Willis, Mos Def and David Morse. Donner is the guy who directed the Lethal Weapon series in case you are wondering. By the gritty timeless look of this film it seems he also reached back to his earlier days of directing TV dramas like Kojak and The Streets of San Francisco.

The film is about a cop (Willis) who has seen better days and, as he puts it, “just wants life to be a little shorter”. He is the poster child for a
man whose life must have seriously gone down hill at some point in time and all he wants to do is wash away those memories in a bottle. When he is asked, or rather forced, into escorting a grand jury witness (Def) 16 blocks to the courthouse, the trip turns into a 118 minute race against time as cop and criminal become allies, and both lives change severely.

There are several things that make this movie worth your journey. One is the earlier mentioned directing of Donner. He puts you right into the action and keeps you twisting and turning for the entire length of the film. There is none of those watch-watching moments where you sort of space out until the story kicks back in. There is the acting of Willis and Def. I always wonder if writing makes an actor better than they really are and I still think a lot of that is true. But this still doesn't take away from the great relationship that Def and Willis deliver. You feel for Mos so that you pull for him from the beginning. The same with Willis. You sort of pity him and want him to get things lined out.

And for me a defining element was the look and feel of the film. It reminded me of going to the theater in 1981 and seeing Fort Apache the Bronx. The environment of the not so pretty side of NY City becomes an additional character. It’s gritty and dirty and weighty and a perfect fit for this type of movie.

I've always been a fan of David Morse since The Green Mile and he does a fabulous job here as a corrupt cop trying to get his ex partner to see things his way. You really can’t stand him and want nothing more than for him to get what's coming even though you feel like he is somehow going to get away with it all. That is a sign of good acting and character placement.

If this movie had bombed I was ready with all sort of title twists like “16 boos”, “16 blockheads” or “just shoot ME already”. But I can’t use those here. This is actually a pretty good flick.

16 Blocks is rated PG-13 for violence, intense sequences of action, and some strong language. They could have gone the R route but made the right move trimming it back as it opens up the door for more kids to see corruption, deceit and bloodshed. Hey, I’m kidding! This is a fairly tame film and it does really allow the plot twists and action to drive it instead of a lot of unnecessary language and violence.  I give it 3.75 out of 5 birthday cakes. With a look at 16 Blocks, I’m Matt Mungle.

The Mungle  2/28/2006

"Matt is a member of the North Texas Film Critics Association (NTFCA) and hosts the weekly syndicated Indie Rock Radio Show Spin 180. Plus with his wife Cindy they do a weekly radio feature, The Mungles on Movies. For additional reviews and interview clips visit the website www.mungleshow.com"