Review - Getaway

Should Have Been A Video Game

Getaway, starring Ethan Hawke and Selena Gomez, is not a movie.

Getaway (in theaters 8/30/13)

Rarely do I start out a review with such a bold statement.

But here’s the deal…a movie has a plot. A movie has a story that you invest your time and effort into for 90 minutes (give or take) and come away feeling something.  A movie takes you to a far off land and shows you things that intrigue you. A movie has many things that Getaway does not have.

HOWEVER (that’s like a big word for BUT), it DOES have probably the biggest amount of gritty real stunt work that I have seen in a film in recent years. 

Here’s the short version of the story. Brent’s (Hawke) wife has been abducted and he’s set off on a number of tasks around town in a stolen car. The tasks seem pointless…but they fit the story. In the midst of the chase around Bulgaria (yes Bulgaria) Selena Gomez pops in the car. Now I would normally use a character name here, but it’s not that it doesn’t matter…they just don’t come up with one (that I could remember).

It looks like she is trying to carjack Brent, but instead there is a convoluted explanation for her being there and they set off on the missions that the voice gives them. 

There is destruction of a WHOLE LOT of property, but not a ton of injuries to people, Brent is a trained racecar driver (or so we’re told). And he’s got one thing on his mind. Save his wife. Does he?

Let me review this two ways. When you look at the whole film from the standpoint of a movie, a complete package, it’s not very good at all. The shortcomings far outstrip the cool aspects.

BUT – try this on for size. View the film as a NASCAR race where you see constant in car views and crashes abound. For that, it’s ok. 

Really there are three actors here (sure other bit parts exist) but there is only Ethan Hawke (very typical in his performance), Selena Gomez (young and needed direction and more than just what felt like an adlibbed role), and Jon Voight (largely heard without being seen). This movie could throw anyone in these three roles and have the same result. I hold out hope for better for Gomez in the future. I know Hawke and Voight are better than what we get here.

So the bottom line, I’m being generous cuz I liked the gritty old school stunt car work, it’s video game fun (I could see this as a cool video game where dialogue, chemistry and plot are unimportant) but it lacks what it takes to be a major player in the action movie marketplace (even in the end of summer).


C-

Getaway

Director: Courtney Solomon
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Selena Gomez, Jon Voight

Rating: PG-13 for intense action, violence and mayhem throughout, some rude gestures and language.
Runtime: 1 hour 30 minutes