Death Sentence is by far the most effective and sensitive film I have seen this year. I know I’ve been bringing up the fact that I’m a new parent in a lot of my reviews this year, but this is a film that any parent would have a hard time sitting though, especially any father. There is an unsaid law among being a parent and that is that your children are not supposed to die before you. As you most of you know it’s not always the case; but it happens everyday because of the world in which we live in and the violence that is part of human nature.
Death Sentence is about a guy named Nick Hume (Kevin Bacon) a man with a great job, a nice house and in rich neighborhood and an wonderful family. All is well in life with Nick Hume, until one faithful night after he drives his older son to a hockey game; a game in which will help his son’s growing hockey career, that a trip though a bad neighbor hood and a car running out of gas would leave to a life changing experience for Nick. While at he gas station his son enters the convenience store at the same time a gang of thugs enter the store to rob it and kill the store owner and slash the throat of Nicks son. Nick watching from outside as the gang flees the scene grabs a hold of the guy who slashed his son’s throat and manages to pull the ski mask off his face before the assailant runs off and is hit by a passing car. Nick son’s later dies, sending Nick and the rest of his family into a world of hurt. After he buries his son Nick finds out that the guy who killed his son is named Jon Darley. John will only be getting jail time of only about three to five years, because Nick was the only witness. Instead of letting John only get off with a short prison sentence; Nick decides to make a up story so that John will get released without doing any time. This decision was made because Nick has other plans, plans far worse for Jon Darley and the rest of the gang he’s involved with. But at what cost is Nick willing to get revenge at, and will it cost him more than he bargains for.
The script for Death Sentence puts many social and moral issues on the table, ones that are a constant problem in today’s society, and the likes in which our government is sometimes to liberal with criminals. As such the rise of vigilantism in the United States is at an all time high, and many communities are fighting back against gangs and drug dealers on their own terms and avoiding the law in doing so. The script for this film deal with many of those issues in a whole and provides us with an outcome that is very shocking and one that may make one think before things blow up bigger than they should. The script is very well written, but at some times in the plot it does get slow. The character development is very good when it comes to the lead roles but the supporting roles are for the most part very underdeveloped. However this does effect much of what’s going on, as most of the gang characters are expendable throughout the film, as we find they are all pretty much the same person acting as a unit. As is with most gangs they are like ants all doing what the one in charge tells them to do.
The acting in Death Sentence is very good, especially Kevin Bacon whom has always been one of my favorite actors. To see him go from the good father to bad ass killer in this role really had me gunning for his character. I have always been a fan of revenge films from the likes of the recent Punisher movie to the Charles Bronson film Death Wish. Bacons character reminded a lot of Paul Kersey from the Death Wish films, full of a lot of revenge and hate for what these gang bangers did to his family. Bacon did a great job with the role, one that I’m sure would make Bronson proud. The rest of the cast was very good as well and featured Kelly Preston as Bacon’s wife, John Goodman as a black market guns dealer and Garrett Hedlund as the gang leader. However despite the great acting this film really belonged to Bacon who took on this part with such great passion.
The films production value was very good as all the sets and effects used in the film were very well put together. Director James Wan who’s known only for the Saw movies really managed to develop the vision he had for this film really well, and he was able to take what he knows in terms of visuals and make this film what it is. For all you horror fans out there that need gore, this film does have some pretty bloody and gruesome scenes all of which can be seen in the unrated version of the film.
Many people might just see Death Sentence as another crime thriller based on a tale of revenge. But I see it different. To me and any parent out there Death Sentence is a true horror film. One of the biggest fears for any parent is to lose their child, and that’s the case with this film, it’s about what one would do in a situation like this, does revenge solve anything or does it make things worse. It’s a film that puts into perspective the worst things that could happen in life. It’s a film that’s very effective and one that parents should check out. Not only does this movie show an outcome that is a tale of mayhem and revenge, but it is also a film in which might educate a parent about a decision in which can change the coarse of you and your child’s life in a matter of seconds. This is a film that had me thinking to the very end. What would I do in a situation like this.
– Horror Bob
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
