Blitz [Blu-ray]

Jason Statham (The Mechanic, The Expendables) heads the cast of Blitz as the tough, uncompromising and un-PC detective “Brant”, who is teamed with unlikely partner “Sgt Porter Nash” played by Paddy Considine (The Bourne Ultimatum) to investigate a series of murders. BAFTA and Tony Award-nominee Aidan Gillen (HBO’s The Wire) and fellow BAFTA-nominee David Morrissey (Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, State of Play, Nowhere Boy) join the cast as a cop-hating serial killer “Weiss” (Gillen) and hack crime reporter “Dunlop” (Morrissey). The strong supporting cast includes Tony Award winner Mark Rylance (recently seen at the Royal Court in Jez Butterworth's Jerusalem), Zawe Ashton (St Trinian’s II: The Legend of Fritton’s Gold), Richard Riddell (The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus), Luke Evans (Clash of the Titans) and Nicky Henson (Vera Drake). Written by Nathan Parker (Moon) and produced by Zygi Kamasa, Steve Chasman (The Bank Job), Brad Wyman and Donald Kushner, Blitz is the second feature to be directed by Elliott Lester. From .co.uk ----------- Is there an action movie star with the consistency and work ethic of Jason Statham? Few seem as prolific, and while Blitz in some ways follows the template of some of his earlier work, there’s a few really quite interesting touches squeezed in between the credits here. At heart, Blitz feels like one of those old-fashioned ‘70s cop thrillers that they apparently don’t make any more. Statham is the old fashioned detective who refuses to play by new rules, with his outlook on life hardly in line with politically correct thinking. And he’s up against an extremely unpredictable, volatile foe in the shape of Aiden Gillan’s cop killer. The two are kept apart for much of Blitz, and this is one of the film’s many wise steps. It allows both to build up respective heads of steam, with Gillen in particular proving to be a really quite distinct villain, and an extremely nasty one. Behind the camera, you can’t help but feel that director Elliott Lester has done his homework, too. Stylishly, but not fussily, edited, Blitz is gritty, pacy, and knows not to outstay its welcome. There are elements of the film that you’ll have felt you’ve seen before, and there are few surprises to Statham’s performance in particular. Yet that proves to be one of the movie’s strengths, and it’s hard not to chalk Blitz up as another highly watchable entry on Jason Statham’s CV. A good, solid, action thriller. --Jon Foster

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