Drive Angry 3D (2011)

Ah Nicolas Cage. You do love these blockbusters nowadays, don't you? Putting aside the fact that it doesn't look like he will return to Drama films anytime soon (much to my disappointment), Cage has always been an enigmatic lead that can light a screen on fire (sometimes literally). 'Drive Angry' is his first 3D film - but does Cage reach out of the screen and grab us or is he still thinking of the paycheck?

Patrick Lussier's film should be taken with a pinch of salt. As long as you don't go in expecting the emotional intensity of the 'Oscar' films, you'll be pleasantly surprised. What I like most about 'Drive Angry' is how unapologetic it is. This is a big, explosive, grindhouse 3D film. The plot is fairly mediocre but it doesn't matter. With a film like this all the audience wants to see is the special effects and action sequences.

And 'Drive Angry' has a plethora of both. The story follows John Milton ('Paradise Lost' reference possibly lost on the target audience), a criminal escaped from Hell who is after those who took his granddaughter and murdered her mother. The little girl has been taken by a satanic cult led by Jonah King (Billy Burke). Along the way Milton is joined by a standard 'hottie' (Amber Heard) and hunted down by a man named The Accountant (William Fichtner).

Cage plays everything relatively straight and sadly doesn't really 'lose his shit' at any point. The best performance from the film comes from Fichtner who reprises his cool but crazed role last seen in the tv series 'Prison Break'. I looked forward to the scenes involving him and I'm glad Lussier included him in most of the movie. 'Drive Angry' is quite graphic in parts but always in a comic way. And it's an 18 anyway so it's what you'd expect from the rating.

Obviously for a film shot in 3D, the effects work well. Still not quite convinced that 3D is 'the future' like so many people keep saying. Wearing glasses over glasses is not the most comfortable experience. Still like 'Tron Legacy', I felt the 3D wasn't over the top and didn't cloud my viewing.

'Drive Angry' doesn't break any new ground. Hell, it doesn't even make a dent in the pavement! But the primary purpose of going to the cinema has always been to be entertained. And it does exactly that.