Collide

Let´s travel back in time, to the year of 2002. Why this year ? Well, it was the year when one film changed my mind a bit, about one actor i could not stand. Remember Hugh Grant ? For many years i did not like him as an actor. Simply because every film he did was just damn boring, way to cheesy and i just could not care. But in 2002, he did a film that i actually enjoyed. A British film called About A Boy, with a very young Nicholas Hoult as the charming Marcus Brewer. I also enjoyed the performance of actor Toni Collette, as the very hippie influenced mother Fiona Brewer. About A Boy became a hit in theatres, and got good ratings from critics. It was one of those films that managed to show, that no matter where you are in life, there are always ways to turn everything around for the better. I must admit that i have not seen a lot of Hugh Grant films lately, but he did surprise me in Cloud Atlas. Anyway, let´s talk about actor Nicholas Hoult. Since he charmed the world in About A Boy, his acting career bloomed away. You would see him do a lot of different films. Everything from X-Men, to Mad Max: Fury Road, or how about the odd zombie film Warm Bodies ? I think it is clear that Nicholas Hoult can deliver many different characters, in many different genre films. How many of you saw him in the film Jack The Giant Slayer ? A fun film adaptation to the classic fairy tale Jack And The Beanstalk. I have not seen his film Kill Your Friends, but i did hear that it was worth a look ( i might take the time to check it out at some point ). Nicholas seems very busy these days, he have several films coming out this year, and next year, so we will surely see more of him soon. During last weekend i sat down looking through dvd films i have not had the time to see. I noticed that i do have some titles that i have forgotten about, and here i came across a film called Collide. I noticed that the cast includes Felicity Jones, Ben Kingsley and Sir Anthony Hopkins. Wow, talk about a really good cast. Maybe that is why i picked up Collide from the first place, to see if all of these actors in the same film would be delightful experience. I always enjoy checking out action films, so i took the time to see Collide. Is this an action film for the whole family, or is this a film no one needs to know exists ?

Casey Stein ( Nicholas Hoult ) is a young American, living in Cologne, Germany. He and his best friend Matthias ( Marwan Kezari ) works for the drug dealer Geran ( Ben Kingsley ). Casey meet the friendly bartender Juliette Marne ( Felicity Jones ) at the night club she works. He decides to take a chance, and quits his job, just to make sure Juliette will want to spend time with him. It turns out alright, as they decide to become a couple. But Juliette become very ill one night and have a seizure, it turns out she have been keeping a secret. She is in need of a transplant treatment, because her kidney is in very bad shape. Since Juliette is not a citizen of Germany, she is unqualified to have surgery in Germany. This means she will be forced to go back to America to get an operation. But with no money, Juliette have no chance to have a new kidney. So Casey decide to go back and work for Geran, to pull off a large drug theft from Germany´s biggest drug dealer, Hagen Kahl ( Sir Anthony Hopkins ). Have Casey made a decision that could destroy his life ?

You would expect that a film with a cast of so many talented actors, would deliver a film that will please the viewer. In the case of Collide, i get a sense that we have been ripped off. I don´t mind that this is not a 100 million dollar project, a film does not need to be good just because of the budget size. But it becomes very clear, that this action film could have looked much better, considering it cost over 20 million dollars to make. Remember how beautiful the action film Desperado looks with Antonio Banderas, and that film only cost 7 million dollars. I know, these films are very different, but still just making a good point. The plot is very simple, and i don´t really have a problem with the story. The problem is that the film is never really interesting as an action film. If a director can make an action film look good, and also feel entertaining, you have a good combination. Collide tries to look like a serious action film, but never manage to make you care much about the characters, or the action scenes. Nicholas Hoult is not all bad, but as the main actor in this film, he could have been much tougher, and rougher. Ben Kingsley as the very odd character Geran, is just simple awful. You don´t feel like Ben Kingsley gives a shit about being in the film, and this is just so sad. I have big respect for such a legendary actor, but this is not worthy him. Felicity Jones does at least give her character a personality, but not much more. The film is basically saved by actor Sir Anthony Hopkins, in the scenes where you see him. His screen presence always brings something special, even if he does not do one of his best performances here. Director Eran Creevy have directed 2 feature films in the past, and i have seen one of them called Welcome To The Punch. That film is actually a good action film, and did manage to deliver some pure popcorn moments. His latest film Collide turns out to be just another action release, that does not bring anything interesting to the genre. Considering that this could have been something good with this cast, Collide is more a waste of your precious time. There are plenty of action films you could choose instead of this one, and still have a good time. I suggest you watch the 1996 classic film The Rock instead on blu ray, and i guarantee that you will have a blast. Some action classics never get boring, while Collide is a film you will easily forget. 

Rating: DD