Pun Salad

It seems that most of the recent movies I've watched are either wonderful or dreadful. So it's kind of a relief to report that this is a totally mediocre movie. Not a dreadful way to spend 102 minutes, but nothing with which you'll be overly impressed. It appeared on most "Box Office Bomb" lists for 2012. Rated PG-13 for "violence and brief strong language".

The hero is Nick, played by the sometimes-blue guy from Avatar, Sam Worthington. He has been railroaded into the slammer for swiping a fabulous diamond from millionaire David Englander (Ed Harris). But he makes a daring escape, aided by his brother Joey (Jamie Bell). And the next thing we know, he's checked into a high Manhattan hotel, climbed out on the—guess what?—ledge, and quickly draws a crowd. The cops include Lydia, the designated don't-jump negotiator (Elizabeth Banks), Dante (Titus Welliver), Jack (Ed Burns), and Nick's old partner Mike (the Falcon himself, Anthony Mackie).

All these people deserved to be in a better movie.

If you've guessed that Nick's suicide attempt is a scam, designed to be part of an elaborate scheme to prove his innocence… well, you're correct of course. The main problem is that the scheme is several times more improbable than your average Mission: Impossible episode. But it's sort of fun to watch the actors try to sell the ludicrous plot.