-Written by Bryan Miller.
Dan Lawson (Samuel L. Jackson), a Chicago detective, travels to Scotland to link up with Scottish Detective Glen Boyd (Gianni Capaldi), following the resurgence of a serial killer whose crimes match an unsolved case that he looked into 5 years ago in Chicago.
Damaged, the latest thriller, starring Jackson, lacks one major thing that is absolutely essential in order for these movies to be successful--thrills. It is essentially a paint-by-numbers movie that includes just about every possible trope one would expect of a serial killer movie. Even the trailer has so little faith in the movie that it gives many of the major twists away. So, does that mean this movie is terrible? Is it worth seeing? Meh. It is not terrible, just uninspired.
Okay, I am going to change things up this time and begin my review by focusing first on the negative aspects of the film.
First, the plot for Damaged is thin. Jackson plays a Chicago police detective who is tasked with traveling to Scotland to assist with a series of murders who may be the same serial killer he sought five years earlier. I’ll admit, I did not hate that main conflict of the film. I really thought the setup was interesting and it was a fun approach to the material. Sadly, once the conflict is introduced, the movie becomes incredibly basic. The murders are graphic in nature and the killer’s attempts to be enigmatic are painfully unoriginal. The film also strives to include a personal struggle with just about every single main character, which I assume was an attempt to give each of them a damaged persona, but it just became disenchanting. Jackson’s character is depicted as being an alcoholic who has been unable to reclaim his life after the brutal slaying of his girlfriend at the hands of the aforementioned serial killer. It is not a new concept by any means. The only difference here is that his alcoholism does not affect him one way or another throughout the film so it is a moot point. It is just a character flaw needed to show how the killer has continued to negatively impact his life. They could have made him obsessed with basket weaving and it would have made the same impact on the story as his alcoholism. After Jackson’s character, we are then introduced to Detective Boyd, played by Capaldi (who also co-wrote the film). Boyd also has his fair share of issues as he is dealing with the tragic loss of his son, which has caused a rift in his marriage. Again, nothing new. Even Vincent Cassel, who plays Jackson’s former partner, Bravo, is a recovering alcoholic who left the United States seeking a new start. I do see where they were going with all of this, but it is done in a manner that I never felt invested in the characters nor their struggles. It felt as if their difficulties were shoehorned in to only make them potential suspects.
Another aspect of the film that I did not like was Capaldi’s character. Though billed third after Jackson and Cassel, Capaldi is in fact the main character of the film as the majority of the movie focuses on him. This makes sense as the movie is set in Scotland, but I did not think Capaldi sold the mourning husband/father enough for me to buy into his struggles. He does not have the charisma that Jackson has and in many ways Jackson is a complete distraction as he overshadows him everytime he is on screen. Perhaps a different actor could have really dove into Boyd’s personal struggles and truly made you feel the hardships he was going through, but it never ascends to a more prolific level in this movie. He just comes off as disingenuous and insincere.
Okay, so those were the biggest issues I had with the movie, but what are some positives?
Even though he is miscast and misused for the majority of the film, Jackson is always a positive. Though he has over 200 film credits, he always elevates whatever movie he is in. He never fails to provide an enjoyable performance and the same can be said here in Damaged.
I also felt the film was well shot. Matthias Pötsch, the Cinematographer of the film, does a fantastic job setting the mood through his use of light and shadows. He uses darkness as a tool to make the viewer feel uncomfortable or isolated. It is one of the most effective aspects of the film, it is just a shame that it is lost in a pool of predictable plot points and underwhelming characters.
The last positive thing that I can say for this movie is the ending. Like every movie, the ending of any movie can make or break the whole experience. This is most definitely the case with mystery thrillers. If you are unable to buy into the twists and turns then the rest of the movie is pointless. This movie, though flawed, gives you a relatively exciting last act, which I truly appreciated. It made the whole experience less daunting and provided me with some sort of a severance package for watching.
All in all, Damaged is unimaginative and unoriginal. It is not the worst I have seen as it is elevated by some decent acting by some veteran actors, and a twist ending that I did not see coming, but it brings absolutely nothing new to the table. It is not a movie that I am going to remember after a few days and even vague descriptions of different moments from within this film will just hearken back to the better movies. Watch it if you're bored on a rainy day and if it is free, or just watch Seven, or Manhunter. Hell, I’d even recommend 2000’s The Watcher starring Keanu Reeves and James Spader. I could go on, but you get the point.
Directed by Terry McDonough.
Written by Paul Aniello, Gianni Capaldi, & Koji Steven Sakai.
Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Vincent Cassel, Gianni Capaldi, Laura Haddock, John Hannah, Kate Dickey, etc.
5 Tasty Cheeseburgers Out of 10 = WORTH WATCHING, BUT YOU’VE BEEN WARNED
