Cão de Briga

An interesting take on the issue of kidnappings and killings in the Southeast Asian region, this action thriller failed to attract audiences around the world. For me it was not only slow-paced but anticlimactic. The performances, not only by the supporting characters but by the protagonist as well, were bland and so stereotypical of action movies wherein the dramatic performances were slowly diminishing in quality and depth. The storyline, however, was solid and interesting. The amount of violence and gory scenes were just sufficient for me. It would have been a more thrilling ride if it was longer.

When I happened to stumble upon the 2024 movie "Hellhound", I opted to sit down and watch it, as the movie had Louis Mandylor on the cast list.

Sure, I had never heard about the movie, but that hardly mattered, as it being a movie that I hadn't already seen was essentially sufficient to make me want to watch it. And since I had never heard about it, then director Joshua Dixon had every opportunity to impress and entertain me.

The storyline in "Hellhound" was pretty straightforward, though one might argue that it was actually generic. However, it wasn't really an outstanding or particularly memorable viewing experience.

The acting performances in the movie were good. I was only familiar with Louis Mandylor of the entire cast, but I will say that they had some good actors and actresses on the cast list. It was a bit difficult to take the Tar character (played by Panya Yimmumphai) serious given the tattoos.

Suitable for a single viewing perhaps, "Hellhound" is essentially a generic action crime thriller, though it felt like director Joshua Dixon was setting out for it to be a tad more. However, there wasn't enough action sequences or adrenaline-filled sequences to make it a memorable viewing experience. Instead, you are in for a lot of dialogue-driven scenes, that has a tendency of dragging on for a bit longer than necessary.

In fact "Hellhound" felt like so many other action crime thrillers, so director Joshua Dixon failed to make it an outstanding or memorable movie. Sure, it was semi-watchable, but you're not in for anything grand here.

My rating of "Hellhound" lands on a three out of ten stars.

The is a "B" film with a very weak story and many weal elements, including the script and the overly complicated nature of how the story is told. The saving grace of the film is the screen presence of Lousi Mandylor. Mandylor has established himself as the most solid and consistent presence in "B" action and tough guy films. He has had some great ones, most notable the two Debt Collector films, but this one falls short of those. Regardless, he s good here. So is the action. The fights and settings are fun. I happen to watch this on the day after the big Earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand, which was by coincidence, but made it a little different to watch.

Good points - Great location scouting, good establishing shots, all round DoP work is very proficient if unimaginative, great lighting and sound. Wardrobe and make up v good. V good direction of action scenes, the last fight in the red corridor was super and very atmospheric, tons of locations used very well Bad points - V poor script and story with terrible dialogue - cringeworthy at times made worse by some weak delivery. Very difficult to feel any empathy for the protagonist (the actor clearly took the money and ran) - totally confused in the final scenes with 2-3 new? Characters - no idea what was going on. Some of the acting was dreadful eg the priest and the very experienced Thai actors. There was no real character depth or arcs, 2D comic strip stuff.

The direction seemed non-existent in terms of creativity. It looked like a series of half-baked TV commercials stitched together rather than a plausible feature film.

Would you ask a writer to be a DoP? No, obviously not , so why ask a DoP to be a writer? Is it arrogance or lack of humility? I guess this was an expensive vanity project - The cool locations and lead actor could have been used to create an edgy crime drama if the producer or director paid an experienced script writer and acting coach 5-10k . Hope to see similar locations and crew create a much better 2nd feature.

This for me, a strange watch. I remember the main actor, was in a movie with Scott Adkins. 2 good fun movies. Debt Collectors.

So, this movie, a very strange video aspect, it appears that if you look at the screen, about one quarter of the movie if missing on the left side.... But, it is what it is.

So, the story, I get it, maybe some subtitles for the Thai language would be helpful, but an enjoyable movie, action as expected.

So a bit of vengeance in this but not fully explained in the original synopsis.

Moving forward, I thought it was enjoyable, having no idea what the thai language parts meant, but did not spoil the movie at all.

As far as an action movie, all good, enjoy the watch. If you happen to see with full english subs, would be useful.