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Friday, January 27, 2012

(Movie Review) Contraband

Call him what you want, Marky Mark, that guy from the Calvin Klein ad, or Donnie Wahlberg’s (from New Kids on the Block) little brother, but never make the mistake of calling him fluke. I think that people forget that Wahlberg has had an incredibly successful film career. People poke fun of him in a lot of ways. Usually this is because of his time as Marky Mark (along with the Funky Bunch). My point is that no matter where he came from, or how he became famous, Wahlberg has been in some highly successful and critically acclaimed movies in his career. While this film doesn’t live up to his performance in The Fighter, it does show that he actually deserves any success that he has garnered over his career…and that is not something that MANY in Hollywood can say about themselves.
Storyline: Chris Farraday (Wahlberg) is a man with a dirty past. That dirty lifestyle is something that he has worked very hard to get away from. When his brother-in-law gets in over his head, by following in Farraday’s old footsteps of international smuggling, the situation calls for Farraday to come to the rescue. The only way to do that is to go back to the life that he once rejected and to smuggle drugs and money into the country. When he thinks that the job is coming to an end he quickly realizes that not everyone can be trusted and that some friends are not what they seem. Chris must find a way to not only protect himself from these drug lords, but to also protect his family.
Wahlberg, as I said, turns in a great performance. However, the real show stealer in this movie is Giovanni Ribisi as a low life character named Tim Briggs. Ribisi is always great in almost anything that he touches, but he took a character that most people would have played “over the top” tough and turned it into an immoral greasy gangster with no allegiance to anyone except himself. He easily has some of the more memorable moments in the film and plays the part perfectly. While the movie would have been good without him, his presence adds something truly unique. He will not win any awards for this role, as I do not think the OSCARS have a “greasy drug dealer” category, but I do think that it is a great performance.
Worth the admission? Yes. I originally planned to watch the new Underworld film this weekend (only to see if they have properly revived that lame-duck franchise) but am really glad that I saw Contraband instead. The movie is funny, has some nice action, and ALWAYS keeps the level up suspense heightened. Take time to check it out. The Funky Bunch demands it!
Let me know what you thought of the movie

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