Jolt

I had to bring up Crank because the similarities are definitely intentional: this is an R rated, single syllable titled, hyper violent, potty mouthed action movie with an English lead. Though it would have served it better to really go for the extremes the same way Crank did.

It's entertaining enough, with a script that had some fun ideas and turns, but most of the good stuff was underdeveloped. Probably would have fared better with a better director. Still, the cast is good(always fun to see Stanley Tucci) and the action is decent.

For the less than 90 minute runtime, this is a pretty enjoyable waste of time.

Lindy (Kate Beckinsale) has anger issues since childhood. She was institutionalized but nothing helped except an experimental treatment from Dr. Munchin (Stanley Tucci). She self-induces electrical shocks to her body whenever she has murderous thoughts. It's a lonely existence until she starts dating nice accountant Justin. When he's murdered, she seeks revenge while police detectives Vicars (Bobby Cannavale) and Nevin (Laverne Cox) investigate.

The idea is interesting but it starts to wear thin sooner than expected. The first part's issue is that it gets repetitive. She has murderous vision, she gets a jolt, and the scene resets to normal. It happens over and over again. Once the premise is stated, the whole series of cinematic moves is not needed. The comedy needs to be better and I'm not sure that Kate Beckinsale can deliver it. She can definitely deliver the cool but she struggles to lead in this one. I like the start but the movie peters out over time.

It's worth watching if you're a fan of Kate because she's beautiful in this film. The film itself is just ok.

It is very puzzling that there are a number of very negative reviews with "1" or "2" ratings. I suspect those didn't even watch this movie. Look at the distribution of ratings, most are in the "5", "6" and "7" categories. It definitely is not a "1" or a "2".

Beckinsale is great as the young woman who battles with impulse control, and with her great strength and speed can wreak lots of havoc if she is so inclined. She uses a self-administered shock ("jolt") to keep herself from following through when something agitates her. Most of the time. It should not be taken any more seriously than an action comic book, not everything has to be plausible. Plus there is an interesting thread of a story there. Did you know in war they taught dogs to go towards enemy tanks, with a bomb strapped to them?

But it is mostly hilarious with inventive situations and inventive dialog. But caution, the language is often really hard-R rated. It isn't a great movie but as fun entertainment it definitely hits the spot if you are in the right mood

My wife and I both enjoyed it, on Amazon streaming movies.

Not exactly high art but enjoyable and doesn't take itself seriously.