Z/Web

Somewhat atypical revenge flick, with a genius out to hurt the legal system that made a deal with the man who killed his wife and daughter. It’s above average in some ways, as the clever man does most of this from inside prison, which is intriguing. However, the resolution is typical and the explanation unsatisfying. At first we are rooting for the guy but later he just seems crazy. I guess that’s the point, but it made his revenge seem unsavory and the audience can’t enjoy it then. It’s not a bad film, merely uneven and inconsistent, and too manipulative. It’s a fun premise and could have been done better. We certainly aren’t given much of an explanation as to why the guy is so obsessed (supposedly he’s been fighting the legal system legally for ten years and now is taking matters into his own hands, but it feels weak as he wasn’t screwed that badly). Even the murder at the beginning is vague and undefined. (It took me a while to realize the wife and daughter had been murdered, and I never could figure out why he wasn’t killed or why his family was attacked — I kept expecting some late twist in the tale that would reveal some unethical behavior on his part had provoked the attack, so in reality he was angry at himself for indirectly killing his family, but that never happened.) All-in-all: see this if you like this sort of film, otherwise wait for the DVD.