E's Reviews: Rampage

RAMPAGE! Oh, Rampage...Where do I begin? Rampage is an action/adventure film starring Dwayne Johnson, also known as The Rock, as a primatologist (believe it or not), who is joined by a geneticist played by Naomie Harris, to stop three genetically altered animals from destroying the city of Chicago. They are also joined by Jeffery Dean Morgan as a government agent, and Malin Akerman and Jake Lacy as a brother and sister team of...uh...evil corporate people...? I dunno how else to describe the bad guys of this movie...And, oh yeah, there’s a cameo for Joe Manganiello. I say cameo because he’s in it for like...10 minutes.

I was lucky enough to check this movie out on a two-for-one ticket night at my local Alamo Drafthouse with my wife and we sat down to enjoy this 1 hour and 47 minute mindless feature. I gotta say, I was a little surprised. I went in expecting it to be completely idiotic and just all around stupid. Well, it was pretty stupid and completely idiotic. It was a mindless action movie where you could just sit and eat popcorn and laugh at the dumb stuff happening on screen. The story, which I won’t spoil, is paper thin. It really is just that...a dumb action movie.

What can I say of the performances? Dwayne Johnson is charismatic and charming as always. The back and forth he has with Jeffery Dean Morgan and with the CGI gorilla, George, is amusing and fun. What else can I say? He’s the Rock. George, however, steals the show. I couldn’t help myself but root for the giant gorilla the entire movie. Naomie Harris as Dr. Kate Caldwell was annoying. I couldn’t stand her character. I kept waiting for something significant to happen with her character, but it just didn’t happen. It was almost like the script said “Ok and now she does this, no explanation, she just knows” and Kate immediately knew and did it. It was such a shame because I know she’s a great actress. Jeffrey Dean Morgan was incredible in this movie. As secret OGA (Other Government Agency) agent Harvey Russell, he was funny and pulled off a Southern accent perfectly. He was just all-around great in this movie. Every scene with him just dripped with awesome. As for Malin Akerman and Jake Lacy as brother and sister corporate a-holes Claire and Brett Wyden...they were awful. I couldn’t get behind their entire motive. I mean, make giant monsters and genetically alter their DNA for...money? That was it? That’s your grand plan? So stupid...

The CGI itself was impressive (especially for George the gorilla and for the giant alligator...you’ll see...) The destruction of Chicago, the entire third act, was action packed and had me worried for Dwayne Johnson’s Davis Okoye at times. I kept thinking he would get taken out at any moment.

The biggest issues with the movie came from the script, which was terribly written, even with the star power of Dwayne Johnson. The entire 2nd act was a mess that almost completely took me out of the movie. The cameo for Joe Manganiello was a waste. They could have turned him into a legitimate threat for Davis and friends if they gave him a decent part. Imagine a hand to hand fight between Dwayne Johnson and Joe Manganiello? It would’ve been awesome! Other than that, the movie was a fun, mindless film with giant creatures destroying a city. It’s shortcomings aside, I enjoyed it for the most part. What else could a movie of this genre ask for? Knowing me, I’ll probably pre-order the digital copy anyways...because I do enjoy movies like this. It’s not a great film by any sense of the word, but you will have fun watching the cheese ooze off the screen.

Score: 5.5/10