Have you ever wanted to be the best at something but always knew you never would be? What would you do in order to achieve the success & recognition that you think you deserve? These are the questions that are about to plague Taz (Simon Rex); an ambitious young, but slightly egotistical drug baron who is walking in the footsteps of his once kingpin father, Norman (Ving Rhames). Taz lives somewhat of a double life peddling his dope, women & money on the side whilst trying to maintain a family man facade. The biggest problem in Taz's life right now is Dunnie Jnr. (Cesar Ferriat), the current "king of the avenue" (or in other words-leader of the gang). He is the only man standing between him & what he refers to as his "birthright". Anyway one night, Taz wakes up to see the Devil seated before him. The Devil tells him that Dunnie Jnr. is not just planning to kill him but he is also planning to murder his wife & son. The Devil then propositions Taz; let the current reality take its course or seize the opportunity to become the next 'king of the avenue' (yeah I know I should probably trademark that term) by resurrecting his dead father as a demon & ultimately damning his soul for all eternity. Let's just say, the decision he makes won't surprise you...
Anyway I need not expand on the plot anymore than that because up until that point, the film was actually a promising crime drama. I prefer to remain positive about all this but I truly find it hard to fathom why a self-respecting director would choose to turn his film into a schlocky thriller when he has already established something different & definitely more realistic in the first 25 minutes of his film? Also please don't get me started on the script (which was written by the director Ryan Combs)...it was so shockingly bad that most scenes in the latter part of the film show Ving Rhames with an undeniable smirk on his face like he can't get a bad joke out of his head! I don't see Ving Rhames as a particularly bad actor so all I can say is; he must be in this project for the cash. I also have a need mention that all the narration sequences with Simon Rex are just the repeatedly spoken thoughts of what he & all the other characters have already exchanged through their dialogue- yet another insult to the audience's intelligence!
Perhaps I have become too used to watching high-budget films that are so technically perfect that any other indie flick like this that even aspires to compare is looked at by me as inferior? However with that said I do think most people will agree with me on this point that the plot unnecessarily morphed into an abysmal mess after what was a very good introduction. Simon Rex was pretty mediocre as Taz & most of the time played a very unconvincing character through the choices he made. I can't say much for any of the other cast members because they all played such cliché crime & friend/family figures that I never really had any emotional investment in them. In total honesty I couldn't have cared less what happened in the end of this film...I was just happy to see the credits rolling!
Now with all that said & done if the Devil himself visited me right now & gave me the choice of either surrendering my soul to him or watching this film over & over again for the rest of my natural life...I would probably have to think a little harder than usual about it.
1.5/5
Anyway I need not expand on the plot anymore than that because up until that point, the film was actually a promising crime drama. I prefer to remain positive about all this but I truly find it hard to fathom why a self-respecting director would choose to turn his film into a schlocky thriller when he has already established something different & definitely more realistic in the first 25 minutes of his film? Also please don't get me started on the script (which was written by the director Ryan Combs)...it was so shockingly bad that most scenes in the latter part of the film show Ving Rhames with an undeniable smirk on his face like he can't get a bad joke out of his head! I don't see Ving Rhames as a particularly bad actor so all I can say is; he must be in this project for the cash. I also have a need mention that all the narration sequences with Simon Rex are just the repeatedly spoken thoughts of what he & all the other characters have already exchanged through their dialogue- yet another insult to the audience's intelligence!
Perhaps I have become too used to watching high-budget films that are so technically perfect that any other indie flick like this that even aspires to compare is looked at by me as inferior? However with that said I do think most people will agree with me on this point that the plot unnecessarily morphed into an abysmal mess after what was a very good introduction. Simon Rex was pretty mediocre as Taz & most of the time played a very unconvincing character through the choices he made. I can't say much for any of the other cast members because they all played such cliché crime & friend/family figures that I never really had any emotional investment in them. In total honesty I couldn't have cared less what happened in the end of this film...I was just happy to see the credits rolling!
Now with all that said & done if the Devil himself visited me right now & gave me the choice of either surrendering my soul to him or watching this film over & over again for the rest of my natural life...I would probably have to think a little harder than usual about it.
1.5/5