Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
Director: Wes Miller, Defiant Screen Entertainment.
The big-screen acting career of Bruce Willis is simultaneously quintessential and indefinable. The quirky comedy-drama television series Moonlighting set him up as a household name in 1985, but it was the Die Hard franchise that made him a brand.
Willis portrayed the cynical but good-natured New York City police detective John McClane, who takes on terrorists. It boosted him in the collection of action heroes and endures as his defining screen role. He also left a defining mark with his portrayals in The Sixth Sense and Pulp Fiction.
Now the movie world is a little subdued after Willis announced he was stepping away from acting because of his aphasia diagnosis (a neurological disorder).
In A Day to Die Willis takes on a different role: as the city’s corrupt police chief Alston. The plot follows an ex-military parole officer, Connor Connolly (Kevin Dillon, Poseidon, The Blob), who has only 12 hours to pay $2 million to a gang as a ransom for rescuing his kidnapped wife Candice (played by Brooke Butler, Lantern’s Lane, The Remains). Connor found himself in this predicament after killing a drug syndicate member while protecting a parolee. As it turns out, that member worked for Tyrone Pettis (Leon Robinson, Cool Running, Above the Rim), a local drug kingpin, and he is not happy.
To help him, Conner calls on his brother Tim (Gianni Capaldi, The Commando, Clown Fear) and recruits his old crew, led by Brice Mason (Frank Grillo, Boss Level, Jiu Jitsu), the ex-captain of a ‘ghost’ squad. They pull off a series of dangerous heists to repay the money he owes and settle a score with Alston. It’s a race against time, and the crew must rely on their tactical training and brotherhood to save themselves and those who matter most.
Director Wes Miller (Hell on the Border, River Runs Red), also co-writer and co-producer, competently shoots the film which has a clichéd plot, some roughness and not enough is seen of Willis.
What role does Bruce Willis play in A Day to Die? If the answer is correct, you could be one of three winners to get DVDs of this film. Entries should be sent to [email protected] by Monday, 30 May 2022. Names of the winners will be announced in Frank Cassidy’s PS-sssst…! column on 31 May 2022.
- A Day to Die is out on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital
