Review of Skyscraper
Skyscraper by Kathia Woods
Skyscraper is the latest installment in Dwayne Johnson 's catalog to remain number one in the action genre.
The movie commences with Will Sawyer than FBI agent losing his leg during a raid. Will Sawyer Dwayne Johnson's character recuperate from the tragedy and marries the Navy Surgeon that operated on him? They have two adorable children relocate to Hong Kong where he works as a security expert for the latest high rise. It all sounds elegant and fairytale-like, but there is a twist. A hint comes early, why was Sawyer’s startup security company hired out of thousands better equipped well it’s the old hook up. His former teammate Ben referred him. Will is grateful for the opportunity but fails to recognize that it’s a set-up.
Let's discuss the positives about the movie. Visually it's stunning. The Pearl, the building all the huff is about indeed looking like the 9th wonder of the world. Everything is sleek, modern and computerized. There’s no bad view. Neve Campbell plays Sarah Sawyer Will's wife and it’s nice to see her attached to a big budget film like this. The action sequences are breathtaking, and the special effects aren’t overused. The Asian Actors converse in Mandarin instead of English when talking amongst themselves and switch quickly to English when speaking with the Anglo Characters. May seem like a small detail but essential seeing that the story takes place in Hong Kong-China.
All good things must come to an end. Let's discuss the elephant in the room, Dwayne Johnson, portraying an amputee. One moment he can’t run but the next he’s leaping buildings. Also, are you supposed to use a mechanical leg to hoist yourself up with or is that for emergency use only. I am a non-disabled critic, and I cringed at the sight of that.
It was great to see so many Asians Actors in a movie and not just as bad guys, but as heroes, however, they were grossly underused. I would have liked to see them more involved in getting a handle on things.
Was I the only person that felt that Neve Campbell should have been more equipped to kick butt She is a former Navy surgeon that was deployed to the middle east, yet she can’t fire a gun or do any hand to hand combat?
The whole former friend betrayal scenario was very predictable. Also, we knew immediately who the good guys were and who the bad guys were. The premise was also not a new one seeing we have seen this in a much better version in Die Hard.
The whole idea that is lacking with The Rock’s movies is that there isn’t any character development or real story. We keep coming because we like the persona that’s Dwayne Johnson, but he gives us nothing to make us stay. At some point, he’s going to have to provide us with a complete movie. Rawson Marshall Thurber must accept responsibility for this horrendous story. He gave us great visuals but forgot to provide us with a story. We all love a good hero, but there is a fine line between movie magic and ridiculous.
So on a scale of 1 to 10, it’s a five because of the action.
As far as diversity it gets a seven because the Asians didn’t have much involvement, only one brother, and Neve deserved to have some weapons in her arsenal.