Hey gang, Valkor here. And welcome back to another episode of MediaView; It’s where we sing the praise of an awesome film or bash it into obscurity. Next up, we have Invincible. It’s a film kind of like Aquaslash, where I wanted to love it just from the name alone. But, in the end, it left me disappointed. Expect some spoilers.
Invincible takes place in Thailand and centers on bodyguard Cam (Johnny Strong), who works for an inventor named Teska (Paul Kennedy). Now, Teska is on the verge of some breakthrough nanotech, only he needs a suitable test subject to complete the task. Enter soldier Brock (Marko Zaror), who was out on a special ops mission with his crew, only they were outgunned and it nearly kills Brock. His body is brought back to Teska’s lab, where he is injected with the nanotech, which not only brings Brock back to full health but it also makes him invincible–a slice to the throat or bullets don’t phase him. We later learn that fire can be his undoing if he’s burned enough (I wish I was kidding, but I’m not). But upon waking up, Brock goes mad, escapes the lab and goes on a killing spree.
Because the shit has hit the fan, Cam suggests Teska leave Thailand and he’ll handle Brock. And upon their first meeting, Brock nearly kills Cam. Fortunately for Cam, his buddy brings him back to the lab where he’s injected with the same nanites given to Brock, making Cam the new invincible. And now he not only has to track down Brock (again), but he must also save the love of his off/now on-again girlfriend, Michelle (May Myat Noe), who somehow got mixed up in all this... mess. So, how does it end? If you should happen to sit through this one, then you’ll find out. And if not, then you’re better off not knowing because it’s not that good of an ending. But I’m getting ahead of myself. So, let’s delve a little deeper into why this film won’t make it on my list of favorite action films.
The Good:
Invincible isn’t all bad as some good can be found within its 92-minute run time. First up, there’s the action. And when it hits, it really hits! The distance between the fighters and the camera is spaced out nicely, so you get to see every blow. The choreography is well done and isn’t super sped up. So, kudos in that department! And second, I think Johnny Strong makes for one cool action mofo! He’s got the moves, he’s got the voice, the look and even the name screams action star! This dude deserves to be in more action films... that’s much better than this one, that’s for sure. But even Invincible wouldn’t be so bad had things gone one way instead of another.
The Bad:
First up, as much as I loved the action bits in Invincible, they’re too spread out. I mean, when we get a fight scene, it’s pretty badass. For example, when Cam faces off against Brock in the middle of that abandoned arena. The way the martial arts were mixed in with the gunplay, it was so awesome! Yet, we don’t get enough of it. And there needed to be more scenes with those two going at it. Next, the whole romance angle doesn’t work here as it feels out of place. I get it. You want to give Cam an emotional side to match that tough exterior. But if we chopped out the lovey-dovey scenes, I don’t think we would miss them. That’s time wasted that could have been given to Cam hunting Brock. Next, the acting is pretty thumbs down; I never expected superb acting in an action film. However, what we’re given here is D-level stuff. Still watchable, but oh man! Finally, the ending falls flat. And the way things started with Cam and Brock going at it at the top of a building and Cam’s buddy on his way up with a flamethrower, I thought I was in for one hell of a ride! But no! It ends with a few punches and NO FLAMETHROWER! I wanted to flip tables, I was so mad!
The Ugly:
N/A
Invincible is available on Amazon Instant in Japan under the name “Ultimate Soldier”, with no release date as yet for this side of the pond. I don’t know if the film will get a re-edit before it gets here, but as it stands I’d recommend taking a pass on this one. So, out of TOV 5 stars, I’m giving Invincible a 1.
