Hey gang, Valkor here. And I almost forgot about my second film
centering on an Expendable star. This round, we get a guy who's
no stranger to TOV, with his last film "Battle
of the Damned" getting much praise from yours truly. And now
Dolph Lundgren is back, with a new film that doesn't have a whole
lotta action but damn does it truly rock! Check it out its "Blood
of Redemption" on Blu-Ray Combo pack.
Blood of Redemption centers on Axel (Lundgren), security officer for a crime family whose head of the syndicate, Serge (Robert Miano), looks to get out of the game. Actually he's not trying to get out, rather he's forced out due to some new police officer who "can't be bought", taking up shop. However his eldest son Quinn (Billy Zane) looks to keep things running, dipping into counterfeiting and money laundering. Nevertheless, there are those within the organization, who don't like where things are headed and they take out Serge, while Quinn is arrested during a deal gone sour – possible set up?
Three years have pass and Quinn is released from prison. He discovers the nephew of one of his father's men, Campbell (Vinnie Jones), who was also the guy who was with him that night of his arrest, now resides in his house, heading his family's organization and sleeping with his woman, Loryn (Jelly Howie). Quinn's brother Kurt (Gianni Capaldi) now works for the FBI and spends his days trying to track down his father's killer. Now Axel, he's also working things from his side as they attempt to piece together an intricate puzzle of deceit in trying to pin down this assassin. Not only are Axel and Kurt doing their part, but Loryn is also working things from her end, literally squeezing out any information she can get from Campbell. And once the pieces are in play and their plan to out the assassin is set in motion, it then all comes to an explosive and surprising end.
Blood of Redemption is directed by Giorgio Serafini, who also directed "Game of Death" starring Wesley Snipes (Newcomer to The Expendables franchise), which had some nice action but suffered some major hiccups. This new film however shows that with the right cast, Serafini can put together something special.
The Good:
I expected "Blood of Redemption" to be a total action cheesefest, especially with the list of cast members involved. However I was surprised to find a pretty decent thriller loaded with enough intrigued, betrayal, sex appeal and action to stay well entertained throughout the films 85 minute run. The plot is pretty simple though it has plenty of twists to keep you invested. It plays out like a scattered puzzle that pieces itself together, leaving little to no loose ends behind. The action scenes, while not on the same level as "Battle of the Damned", are spread out just right, are well choreographed and nicely edited; nothing to quick with the camera, holding it back at a nice distance so you can soak it all in. I wasn't expecting anything spectacular with the acting, but again I'm surprised at how well everyone performed. Dolph does what Dolph does; he's grim, he's withered but calm and collected living by a specific set of rules to survive, plus he doesn't have too much to say - his actions speak louder than his words. In short, he's Dolph and he's a bad ass. There's nothing more that needs to be said about that. Billy Zane and Vinnie Jones, also give some righteous performances as well, but the true star of the show – Jelly Howie. Oh god, muh penis! She's absolutely stunning in this film and Serafini puts all that sexiness to good use by showing off dem assets at just the right moment. I'm sorry Jennifer Aniston, I still love you… but… Jelly… Ahem! In the end Blood of Redemption is an amazing piece of work, which was way better than I expected.
The Bad:
There really isn't too much going against the film; the opening was kinda rough, but the film finds its legs sooner after and flows well after that. There were a few scenes that were kinda silly to me, such as the Asian thugs and their poses; I think those dudes hammed it up a bit too much, but then when you only get so much screen time, it's best to take advantage right?
The Ugly:
N/A
Blood of Redemption gets a DVD/Blu-Ray release on September 24th and it's definitely worth checking out; it's got a solid, compelling story with a sweet dose of action and all that Jelly… Howie, in all of her sexiness (pic below very related). In the end, out of TOV 5 stars, I'm giving Blood of Redemption a solid 4.
