Eu Sou a Fúria

"How is him walking out of here going to help my case?" Stanley (Travolta) has just returned home from a long trip and is excited to see his wife again. While on his way home she is murdered. After doing everything by the book legally the killer is set free. Not willing to accept that Stanley takes matters into his own hands and the hunt begins. First of all, this is not a bad movie at all. On the other hand its a little too generic for it to be all that good. There are a few neat twists in this but for the most part you can predict everything that is going to happen pretty easy. Travolta isn't a bad choice for this but he seems a little flat in some parts. In terms of the little B action movies that have been coming out this is definitely one of the best ones, but again this movie has been done over and over and is just not all that exciting. Overall, good movie but too generic to watch over and over. I give this a B-.

Stanley Hill (John Travolta) is getting picked up at the airport by his wife when they get attacked by men who are apparently violent robbers. His wife is killed. She was a close advisor to the Ohio Governor Merserve. Abbie (Amanda Schull) is their daughter. Stanley picks out the killer in a police lineup but the cops just let him go. He reconnects with Dennis (Christopher Meloni), a man from his secret past.

This is a fine example of the lower budget thriller. It has some interesting actors. It also has the pre-requisite former A-list actor to lead the project. The story is pretty standard although I would change a couple of points. While Travolta does his thing, I'm more surprised with the presence of Meloni. They are a good pairing and this would be a better buddy thriller. They should spend more time together. Otherwise, it's nothing special and nothing bad. It's fine.

I saw Travolta on the poster and without knowing much all I could think of is Charles Bronson in Death Wish. I was close. The movie reminds me of a cross between John Wick and The Punisher (of which Travolta played the villain in the 2004 movie version).

Travolta plays what looks like your average Joe, who watches his wife get murdered right in front of him by what looks like an average car jacking in a city that's been boiling over with violence lately, but it turns out Travolta has a past that was beyond average and goes Liam Neeson on the bad guys.

Though he does not look as good as Neeson lashing out those particular set of skills on his wife's killers (but who does?),Travolta was still fun to watch as he hunted down his foes one by one, and just when he thought he was finish, turned out we have more villains to kill. It was like he was leveling up in a video game, that's how far up it goes.

Travolta himself was more convincing as average Joe wanting vengeance for his wife's death then he was at the dude who could seek this vengeance flawlessly, which is why they kept it light. Helping with this tone is Christopher Meloni who plays the dude Travolta has to call when he gets back in the game. I'm a huge fan of Meloni and he gives a great performance as the guy who has one hand still in the pot while pretending to be a barber. The chemistry of Meloni and Travolta as two old soldiers so jaded by it all that they joke back and forth as they stomp out evil. It's good banter.

This action movie was a great safety net for Travolta, I can't remember the last time I seen him in something decent, and that's what this was, very decent, very watchable from the very beginning all the way to the very end.

When the manager of Honda vehicles Stanley Hill (John Travolta) returns to Columbus, Ohio, he is welcomed by his beloved wife Vivian (Rebecca De Mornay) at the airport. Vivian is an advisor of Governor Merserve (Patrick St. Esprit), who has reduced the crime rate in Ohio, and now she is analyzing the environmental effect of a duct of oil in Columbus. When they are at the parking lot, they are approached by three scumbags that kill Vivian. Stan identifies one of the thugs to Det. Gibson (Sam Trammell) and Det. Walker (Asante Jones), but they release the criminal telling that they do not have enough evidence to keep him locked up. But Stan is a former CIA operative and he seeks out his former partner Dennis (Christopher Melon) to find justice to Vivian. Soon they find a network of corruption in very high level and Stan decides to eliminate the problem.

"I Am Wrath" is a film of revenge in the style of the franchise "Death Wish", with John Travolta in the lead role with Christopher "SVU" Meloni as his partner. The result is a highly entertaining film that professional critics will certainly hate. But fans of a good action movie will enjoy and have a goodtime watching this film. Last but not the least, it is impressive how Rebecca De Mornay is still a very beautiful woman. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Eu Sou a Fúria" ("I Am the Wrath")

Note: On 02 July 2022, I saw this movie again.

The movie begins with news montages about the unprecedented crime wave in Columbus, Ohio. Contrarily, Governor John Meserve (Patrick St. Esprit) gives a press conference and says the opposite: crime is down. When questioned by protestors about a proposed pipeline, Meserve promises that he has commissioned an independent study of the pipeline.

Vivian (Rebecca De Mornay), who has something to say about the proposed pipeline, picks up her unemployed husband Stanley (John Travolta), who has returned from a positive job interview to manage a factory in California. At the diffusely lit and practically unoccupied airport parking garage, a man with a fly tattoo on his face (Charley = Luis Da Silva Jr.) approaches and asks them for money. Stanley politely refuses, but two other men mysteriously sneak up on Stanley and stun him with a blow to the head. The first man fatally stabs Vivian and takes her wallet. Although dazed, Stanley watches the men flee.

With Stanley's description of Charley, the police are able to apprehend him. But even though Stanley picks him out the lineup, the police detectives (Gibson = Sam Trammell / Walker = Asante Jones) let him go. They say that his descriptions changed too much (they didn't). Stanley, despondent and enraged, yearns for revenge. While tracking down the men, Stanley realizes that the fatal mugging was no random attack. There were political forces behind his wife's murder. Now he has bigger fish to fry.

Stanley, with his mercenary past, is well-equipped to get his revenge. He also has an ally in a barber, Dennis (Christopher Meloni). Together these guys are dynamite. But you've seen it all before. The flic borrows from other films, such as "Goldfinger" (car-crush scene) and "Taken" (hostage part). The ending with the last shootout doesn't ring true. And there are questions: for instance, why is Stanley's life spared as he is the only witness to the crime in the garage (and the bad guys lack empathy)? But some may like the fact that the film does not require much brainpower to figure out. Also, both Travolta and Meloni are good and rise above their material, which is not strong despite the plot twists. Christopher Meloni at age 55 is in excellent physical condition; Travolta's hair (including the hairline) is peculiar. The movie was filmed on location in Columbus, Ohio.