Maggie

All actors are not meant to be making Oscar winning motion pictures. Some actors are limited when it comes to their acting abilities. And that is ok, especially when it comes to action films, or horror film. There are a lot of great examples, but let´s take one film up here. Ninja: Shadow Of A Tear, is a really awsome action film, with legendary actor Scott Adkins. He is fantastic here at kicking ass, even if he is not the best actor. But that does not matter in this film, he pulls it off really good with his physical performance. If we go back into the 80´s, and remember all the cheesy action films, anyone remember Tango & Cash ? It was dumb in some ways, but entertaining, seeing Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russel as cops, fighting for justice. If there is one actor who got a big breakthrough in the 80´s, it was without a doubt Arnold Schwarzenegger. This big austrian became an action icon, with his magnificent american accent. I belive i have seen every film he have ever made, even from the end of the 70´s with Kirk Douglas in The Villain. This film is actually a funny spin off, on the western genre, where Schwarzenegger plays the character Handsome Stranger ( brilliant name ). After the big breakthrough in The Terminator, released in 1984, Schwarzenegger became very popular with his very violent action films. One of my personal favourites is Predator, from 1987. I think i have seen it 15 times since the release, and i still Watch it when it is on digital cable tv. Over the years, Schwarzenegger have tried many different genres, from the usual action films, to comedies like Kindergarten Cop, Twins and even pregnant in Junior. He even tried the horror genre in End Of Days, that actually was not that bad. After the box office failure Terminator 3, Arnold took a long break from the film industry to focus on his governor job in California. For 10 years he did not do one single film, that is quite a long time. When he was ready for a comeback with The Last Stand, the film flopped at the box office, and it did continue with Sabotage. Arnold is no longer an guaranteed box office success, and it might be that the new generation prefer younger actors. I personally enjoy Arnold for who he is, and he can make fun of himself. When i Heard his next film would be a zombie film called Maggie, i was really skeptical, since i was not sure if this was the right movie for him to make. I was curious to see if he might surprise me, and show a different side of his usual catalogue. Is Maggie one of the best Schwarzenegger films in many years, or is this exactly what he never should have done and sticked to action instead ?

All over the world, an outbreak by the Necroambulist virus, turned humans into zombies. Scientists are trying to find a cure, while many people are already infected. Maggie Vogel (Abigail Breslin) call her father Wade (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Maggie was found by military on the streets, where she have been bitten, and is now infected with the Necroambulist virus. Wade is allowed to bring his daughter home with him, just to make sure they spend time together, before the virus breaks out completely. Wade brings Maggie home to her stepmother  Caroline (Joely Richardson), to make sure Maggie is taken care of. One day while outside, Maggie falls on the ground, hurting her finger. Caroline run out to help her, since she is bleeding. Maggie decide to cut the finger off, and run away from their house. While she tries to cover up the flesh wound, she encounter a couple of zombies walking among the forest. One of them is Maggies friend Nathan, who is no longer alive. Maggie beg Wade not to harm him, but Wade have no choice, to protect his family. Wade try and deal with the situation, especially when he and Maggie visit Dr. Vern Kaplan ( Jodie Moore ), who checks Maggies health. Her arm is badly infected, and Dr. Vern suggest that Wade should be prepared that she will change within time. Wade refuse to let Maggie go, and will deal with this himself. Is there any way Maggie can get well again, or have the virus spread too fast ?

If you are hoping for big explosions, big guns, and some fighting scenes like the glory days of Schwarzenegger´s career, you might be dissapointed. This is not a film that looks anything like his previous films. He did try a more dramatic role in The Last Stand, even if this is an action film. But Maggie is defienetly the most dramatic film i have ever seen Schwarzenegger do in his whole film career. There is a mixture of apocalyptic feeling here, almost like they have used influences from The Walking Dead. If there is one thing i am quite shocked about, is that Schwarzenegger is actually acting in this film. Am i joking with you ? No, it is actually true. This could be one of his better acting performances that he have done for.....over 20 years ? I could understand why he choosed to make a film like Maggie, he have already proved himself to be an action film icon, so he does not need to prove that he can kick ass. Instead, he want to show us that there is another side of him, that if he get the right script he does know how to act. I first thought that this would be another typical zombie killing film, it is definetely different than most films in this genre. The story is much more intelligent than that, because we are following the story of an infected daughter, and her father trying to help her get well. Director Henry Hobson is someone i never heard of, until i checked him up. He have only directed tv specials, trailers, and he have worked on several films as an title designer. Maggie is his debut feature film, and i have to say for his first time as an director ( for a feature film ), he manage to deliver a solid story. Maybe not very original, but at least a different take on the zombie genre. Actor Abigail Breslin, who was the adorable girl in Little Miss Sunshine, is also good in this film. She feels very natural, and gives her character the right touch, of how an infected young woman might react in hard times. Maggie is not one of the best films i have seen with Schwarzenegger, but this is without a doubt a much better film than some of his standard releases. Give Maggie a try, see this film with an open mind without judging Arnold, he is better here than his usual facial expressions. I am quite suprised that he finally managed to deliver an solid performance.

Rating: DDD