Safe (2012)

There's a reason Jason Statham has turned into one of today's most reliable action stars. It's not just that he's exceptional at pounding baddies into submission, but it's the strange sincerity with which he does it. For the past several years, all of his movies have followed the same formula, and by now it should have grown old. Yet it hasn't. Every time Statham gets ready to enter "fight" mode, he is able to make it a new and engaging experience. It's not just in his fists, but in his eyes. There is a determination there; fighting is the one thing his characters are good at, and when he enters the fray there's a feeling that we're seeing this man in his natural habitat. Statham could probably be winning Oscars if he wanted to, but it's hard to fault a man for sticking to the thing that he's exceptional at. Safe is ultimately just another formulaic Statham vehicle, but the meal hasn't grown stale just yet.

Statham's character--if the name matters--is Luke Wright, an ultimate fighter who angers the Russian mob in New York City. His wife is murdered, and he is essentially condemned to a life of solitude. Just when he is about to take his own life, he spots a little Chinese girl (Catherine Chan) who is running from a group of scary men. He soon learns that this girl has a vital piece of information that is coveted by not only the Russians, but the Triads and the mayor of New York City. And thus begins the shootin', punchin' and kickin'.

While Safe doesn't have the greatest filmmaking of all time, it's made by people who know what they're doing. Boaz Yakin (director of Remember the Titans and Uptown Girls!) doesn't shake the camera too much, and he makes the wise decision to let Statham do most of the heavy lifting. There's one striking scene early on, and it's an important one, in which he simply keeps the camera on Statham's face. At this point, Statham's character is at his lowest point. We know he can fight back, but he chooses not to. We see his rage, his desire to fight, but is ultimate decision that maybe taking the situation to fisticuffs isn't the best idea. It's a moment that reminds you that Statham is a pretty darn good actor as well as an action star, and his movies wouldn't work very well if he didn't sell every moment with absolute conviction. His movies are ludicrous, but he never winks at the camera nor does he take things in overly cartoonish directions. He just makes it work.

The unfortunate thing is that this can never be a great movie. Safe follows the Statham action movie formula to a tee, and there are rarely any surprises along the way. There are some terrific setpieces, sure, but after a while you just want it to get to its obvious destination. It's only 94 minutes, but it loses much of its steam by the time the end credits start. By and large, Safe is a mighty fine entry into the Jason Statham filmography, and as long as he is committing himself wholeheartedly to these b-movies then I'm not going to complain. If one so frequently excels at creating lowbrow action entertainment like this, then maybe ambition is overrated.

Grade: B