The Bouncer

In my younger years i went out dancing at clubs in the 90´s and early 2000´s. Usually it was here in Sweden or when i travelled to Greece, Spain or Turkey i would try the night life on different bar streets. I remember especially on one of my trips to Greece ( i have been there 4 times so far, last time in 2018 ) and this happened back in the year of 2001. I was on the island known as Corfu and me and my friend Michael were out on the bar streets and we ended up in a nightclub at the end of the bar street filled with beautiful greek women. In fact it seemed like we were two of the only tourists in there and we found out why. This turned out to be a private birthday party we walked into, a big greek family rented the whole club ( must have been very expensive ). As we entered there were 2 big greek bouncers asking:- Are you members of this family? Of course we were not so they kindly asked us to leave. Unfortunatly my friend Michael was a bit drunk and basically said:- How much do you want to let us in bald head? He should not have said that the greek bouncer threw him out on the street and i was told to help my friend up. Michael was pissed and wanted to fight but i calmed him down. We ended up in a beach bar that night and got drunk there instead. Speaking of bars and night clubs there are a lot of criminal films or action films where you have bars included. For example if you have seen the 2016 crime thriller The Trust from director Benjamin Brewer ( who also directed the 2024 post apocalyptic horror film Arcadian ) starring Nicolas Cage, Elijah Wood and Jerry Lewis, you see the two main characters Stone and Waters meeting privately at the bar called Peppermill. They are cops investigating a drug invasion and stumble upon a mstious bank vault. If you enjoy heist films in general or criminal films The Trust could be something you would want to watch. It´s not original in any way but do remind us of classic heist films from the past. Since i mentioned bouncers earlier at a night club i got an oppurtunity to watch a new action film called The Bouncer. This film seemed to be like a throwback to action films of the 80´s and 90´s so that was definetely a sign this could be something in my taste. Is this an action film you should enjoy this upcoming Christmas or should look for something different to watch instead of The Bouncer?

In Bucharest, Romania, night club bouncer Frank Sharp ( John Ozuna ) is only taking this job to save money to help his ill mother. He have a bad past as he is hiding out after fleeing a murder charge in the U.S. After saving a young woman at the club from powerful mobster Kane ( Costas Mandylor ), this will only cause more trouble for Frank and he already have enough problems in his personal life

When you enter a film such as The Bouncer you should probably know this is not going to be a film that sensitive, prude people will enjoy. This is definetely a film inspired by 80´s action films where we get plenty of violence, gun shootings of course and we even get some fun dialogue as well. But there is also a serious side to this film as well as we learn more about the character Frank ( played by actor John Ozuna who i remember from the film Death Bitch  ), how hes doing his best to get enough money for his mother´s illness while working hard as a bouncer. I personally feel that it was a good idea to bring in a more serious side of this story, because it shows that every family will go through hard things in life no matter who you are or what kind of work you do. Life is difficult but we have to do the best we can to deal with ordinary day life. This is something i feel actor John Ozuna does well in this film as the character Frank, one moment he is a professional bouncer and at the same time he is human like everybody else. There are especially two other acting performances i enjoy in this film and that is from actors Simon Philips and Costas Mandylor ( known from the Saw franchise and the vampire horror film Bloodthirst ). I have to say Costas playing the crime lord Kane is one of the true highlights of this film, he really capture the personality of a women abuser. The martial art scenes may not be many but when we do get some fights where i enjoyed myself. Since i grew up watching martial art action films in VHS stores in the 80´s and 90´s i can clearly see that The Bouncer is inspired by that time period. Anything i feel could have been better? I think when it comes to a film such as this it´s ok if it´s not perfect since there are several details i appreciate. The Bouncer is a love letter to the beloved VHS stores that my generation remember where action films made an impact. With the serious tone of the film and classic action ingredients this film have to offer, i have a feeling The Bouncer will be appreciated by the audience who remember the macho VHS covers we all loved seeing at the rental store. Director Massimiliano Cherchi delivers a film that gives hope to keep independent action films alive for a new generation to enjoy, The Bouncer finds it´s rightful place within this specific genre.

Rating: DDD