GUN SHY
★★
Director: simon west (con air, the mechanic, wild card)
Starring: antonio banderas, olga kurylenko, aisling loftus, and mark valley
REVIEWER: lyall carter
Turk Henry, a bassist for a recently split mega-platinum band, takes his pampered wife on an exotic luxury holiday to Chile only for her to be snatched by a group of shipless buccaneers trying to raise money to buy a boat. Despite having never organized anything more challenging than a club sandwich from room service, Turk embarks on a rescue mission, taking him from the back alleys of Santiago to the jungles of South America.
One of films that I loved growing up was The Mask of Zorro. It was one of the most watched videos in our collection and I've been a fan of Antonio Banderas ever since. Unfortunately Gun Shy is far from his or any of his cast mates best work.
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Reading the synopsis you would think that it sounds like a half decent story. But where Gun Shy goes astray is its tone. There are super serious moments and then there are people exploding or getting shot in a 'comical' way that just isn't really that funny.
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The cast put in a valiant effort but to no avail. Antonio Banderas gives his best impression of Johnny Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow playing an ageing rocker but it just isn't Banderas. He is at his best when he is fiery, brooding, and full of raging tension. Kurylenko tries with her role but its only a little more than a damsel in distress which is so 2003.
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The synopsis is an intriguing one. It's just a pity the end result isn't.
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★★
Gun Shy is available on DVD and digital from all good disc and digital retailers.
