“A HOLY THRILLER”
Starring: Paul Bettany, Lucas Black, Tyrese Gibson, Adrianne Palicki, Charles S. Dutton, Jon Tenney, Kevin Durrand, Willa Holland, Kate Walsh and Dennis Quaid
Directed by: Scott Stewart
MPAA Rating: R for strong bloody violence and language.
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action Thriller
By John Delia
I love most science fiction movies and especially those with all kinds of special effects, explosions, realistic fighting and a good storyline. Although Legion has most of these elements, the movie dragged a bit with the extensive dialogue and an unnecessary amount of character buildup. That said, it is a treat to just pig out on some great pyrotechnics, cool CGI and some good acting performances in Legion.
The bizarre storyline begins with Michael (Paul Bettany), an angel who has come to Earth in search of a baby that can save the human race from annihilation by the wrath of God. Chaos has taken over the earth as a battle rages between the Deity and humans unbeknownst to a small group of misfits that are together at the Paradise Cafe in a remote area of the west. The café’s owner Bob Hanson (Denis Quaid) and his partner (Charles S. Dutton) are not aware that the mass hysteria enveloping the rest of the world is on the way to Paradise. Those gathered at the diner include pregnant waitress Charlie (Adrianne Palicki), Bob’s son Jeep (Lucas Black), a family waiting for their car to be fixed, and an anxious guy on the way to a custody hearing (Tyrese Gibson). When Michael arrives at the cafe with enough guns to outfit a small army and informs the group that the worse has yet to come, a nightmare of seismic proportions starts to unfold.
Gibson, Palicki and Bethany give Legion’s most notable acting performances in this science fiction thriller. Gibson takes on a tough punk role showing the fiery side that his character possesses. He’s the protector in the group up until Bethany’s Michael turns up. Bethany shows Michael with a wicked attitude while bringing enough firepower to wipe out a town. He’ll stop at nothing to protect the pregnant woman he’s come to help, even if it takes loosing his connection to God. Taking on the difficult task of making the audience believe that she’s pregnant while receiving some hard hits, shooting her way out of a corner and dragging a person to safety, Palicki proves she’s a future gem in the talent pool.
But the best performance comes from Charles S. Dutton as Percy the co-owner of the Paradise Café who’s surprised look when being confronted by a cursed human is priceless. Fighting off the onslaught of demons as the apocalypse closes in on the group it’s his character that has to keep a cool head. Dutton has long been a favorite of mine and you can see the reason why in Legion.
The cinematography and computer generated images are first class in Legion. And why not because director Scott Stewart is one of the top experts in the field providing visual effects for movies like Pirates of the Caribbean, Harry Potter and Night at the Museum. He creates some excellent moments in legion especially the swarm and an attack by the mass of angels. Getting the visual effects to work within the storyline can be very tricky but Stewart takes on the challenge with excellent results.
The film is rated R for strong bloody violence and language so be cautioned that the film can be harmful to immature children and teens.
FINAL ANALYSIS:Â Legion provides some very good sci-fi thrills. (4 of 5 Palm Trees)
Actor/producer/director Charles S. Dutton was born in 1951 in Baltimore, Maryland and has appeared on stage, television and in the movies. His productions number 86 starting in 1985 with a small role in Stephen King’s
film Cat’s Eye opposite Drew Barrymore. This led to a career in television including Miami Vice, Cagney & Lacy and 72 episodes of Roc in which he played the title role. His film appearances in the 1980’s included No Mercy with Richard Gere and Jackknife starring Robert De Niro. The 1990’s brought him roles in films such as Mississippi Masala starring Denzel Washington, Alien with Sigourney Weaver, the Hughes Brothers’ Menace II Society, A Time To Kill with Samuel L. Jackson and a heartfelt performance as a trial defendant in Blind Faith. Through the first decade of 2000 his acting ability dominated TV shows and films like the taught drama American Violet, the inspirational The Express and the musical Fame.
Singer/songwriter/actor and former Tommy Hilfiger model Tyrese Gibson was born in Los Angeles, California in 1973. He grew up in the Watts area being raised by his mother after a marital separation in 1983. In 1996 he got a break in show business with an acting job in television’s Hangin’ With Mr.
Cooper. His album Tyrese RIAA went platinum in 1999 followed by 2000 Watts (2001) and I Wanna Go There (2003) garnering gold. In 2000 he won The American Music Awards ‘Favorite New R&B/Soul Artist’ award.
Tyrese is no stranger to the big screen. He made his film debut in Director John Singleton’s Baby Boy (2001) for which he won the lead role. Two years later he landed a part in 2 Fast 2 Furious playing opposite Paul Walker and Eva Mendes. He signed on for the big budget film Flight of the Phoenix with Denis Quaid marking their first appearance together. From 2004 till 2006 he had roles in John Singleton’s Brothers with Mark Wahlberg and Terrance Howard, Annapolis with James Franco and Waist Deep with Larenz Tait. Gibson gained further popularity in 2007 and 2009 with Transformers and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. And in 2010 he re-teamed with Denis Quaid in Legion. His next film will find him in the title role of John Singleton’s action crime thriller Luke Cage.