JOLT (2021)

JOLT (2021)

Tagline: You're in for a shock.

(Action, Thriller, Dark Comedy) [R]

I treat you different because you are different.

In this one, Lindy (played by Kate Beckinsale best known for UNDERWORLD) plays a woman with a condition that makes her incredibly strong and angry when she is triggered. To keep normal she is hooked up to a wearable device that basically jolts her back to her senses. With this device, she is able to stay calm enough to become a bouncer, but upon meeting a potential boyfriend who is abruptly killed, her rage is sparked into a mission of revenge against his assailants. Meanwhile, she is also the top suspect in the murder of said potential boyfriend, so Detective Vicars (played by Bobby Cannavale best known for being Paxton from ANT-MAN) and his by-the-book partner Detective Nevin (played by Laverne Cox) are after her complicating Lindy's efforts.

This movie was released directly to Amazon Prime rather than the theaters which is kind of disappointing. This thing is actually pretty great. Critics have drawn comparisons to other films saying it’s like a JOHN WICK with a bit of CRANK thrown in. I guess those comparisons are solid, but this film does have its own unique flare. While some of the banter seems uncalled for you are just going to get that a lot of these days because films are trying to be edgy or cool or whatever. In films like this, some of it works because the characters are not your normal people. They live in gritty worlds with crazy stuff happening all around them every day. 

The banter between Detectives Nevin and Vicars is pretty amazing as is the dynamic between Lindy and her therapist Dr. Munchin (played by Stanley Tucci). Kate Beckinsale proves that she is actually a vampire seeming to have not aged a day since she shot UNDERWORLD: BLOOD WARS. We also get a stand-out performance from Laverne Cox who is both tough and likable in the role. 

This movie is also loaded with solid direction even if some of the action sequences fall flat in the choreography department. Good pacing keeps this thing going, but its 90-minute or so run time crunches this thing into a bite-size package that almost feels too short. One thing I have always felt missing from the JOHN WICK movies I’ve seen is a bit more humor. This movie as gritty as it is delivers in that area, very well but you will need to actually pay attention to the dialog.  

Overall this is a solid 5 out of 7 for me. You won’t see this on my top 10 movies of the year list, but it’s very likely to end up in the top 20. For UNDERWORLD fans or if you liked movies like BOSS LEVEL or CRANK, this is for you. With an R rating, it’s definitely targeted at adults. 

GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF BOYANA FILM STUDIOS AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY. 

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