Collateral Damage (2002)

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Some of the reviews of this film make me wonder if they actually watched this film. For me it is one of Arnolds best and does not rely on him being an almost superhuman action character, in fact I think his acting in this film is much better than he is given credit for.Arnold plays Firefighter Gordon Brewer who gets plunged into the dangerous world of international terrorism after he loses his wife and child in a bombing. Frustrated with the official investigation and being told that his wife's death was collateral damage, Brewer takes matters into his own hands and tracks his wife's killers to Colombia.I Really enjoyed this film and would watch it again.

Vietnam War veteran and radical anti-war activist Stan Goff worked as a technical military adviser on the film. He later said it was one of the worst experiences of his life and that the finished product was "yet another guns and fire-balls, macho death-cult, fascist film-myth."What's wrong with that? 'Collateral Damage' had its original release date postponed in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks. In a familiar storyline, a group of Colombian terrorists strike at targets on American soil. Schwarzenegger plays fireman Gordy Brewer, whose wife and child are killed in an explosion at the Colombian consulate in Los Angeles. Brewer, feeling that the U.S. government has little concern with finding terrorist leader Claudio Perrini (Cliff Curtis), decides to mount a one-man crusade.So Brewer, the invincible firefighter, journeys into the jungles of South America to take on both the Colombian police force and the terrorist guerrillas.Co-star Fracesca Neri, making a rare appearance in an English language film, eventually appears as the wife of Claudio Perrini. She's exceptionally good in this role, and it is believable that Arnie's character would fall for her, though a bit far-fetched that their paths should cross so fortuitously.Very good last twenty minutes, which merits an extra star. If you can make it through the middle section, overall this is one of the better "guns and fire-balls, macho death-cult, fascist film-myths" I have seen.

This film is only rated 5.2/10, and I struggle to see how it's so low. There is great story telling, by which I mean it really immerses you into the film and makes you empathise with the characters, especially Gordy Brewer (Arnold Schwarzenegger), as well as being easy to follow without being boring, (has a great twist at the end). I regard this as some of Schwarzenegger's best acting, he shows compassion, regardless hatred, and you really get a sense he is just trying to give some low-life terrorist what he deserves. He is also intelligent and turns from fire-fighter to basically a FBI agent when the rest aren't up to the mark/not have enough information. It is a shame people like Harry Lennix and Elias Koteas didn't get more screen time, but hey ho, you can't have everything.It is let down by a few errors, such as the cliché family death thing, and the protection of children etc. But not enough to lower the rating to 5.2/10 in my opinion.

Gordon Brewer is plunged into the complex and dangerous world of international terrorism after he loses his wife and child in a bombing credited to The Wolf. Frustrated with the investigation and haunted by the thought that the man responsible for murdering his family might never be brought to justice, Brewer takes matters into his own hands and tracks his quarry ultimately to Colombia.....After the horrific events in New York, this film was always going to fail. But it's not the film, nor anyone involved with the films fault. It was just plain bad timing.Take these specific elements away, and what you have is Arnold's best film of the noughties. There isn't many to choose from, but compared to The Sixth Day, and Terminator 3, this is really good stuff.What I believed irked many though was the fact that this wasn't The old Arnold we knew and loved. Gone were the one liners, gone were the muscle bound antics and Arnold being invulnerable, this was a step in a totally different direction, and it drove many away.The premise is pure Schwarzeneggar, but with such a tough subject matter, you can't really have a grieving father and husband quipping in every instance.The support are fantastic, Curtis is on form as usual, and Tutorro and Leguizamo make some bizarre but good cameos.it's not the action film you would expect from star and director, but it's a solid thriller, with a great performance from Arnold.Just don't expect the man from the eighties.