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Stiletto
R1 - America - First Look Studios Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo (29th June 2009). |
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The Film
 I may have stated this before, but anytime I’m about to watch a direct-to-video film featuring a large cast of relatively well-known actors it gives me pause. On one hand, I hope that their years of being behind the camera will add some gravitas to what is probably a low-budget flick with little going for it. On the other hand, I sometimes look at the names and see a who’s-who of actors that have been out of the spotlight for some time, which makes me a little unsure about how well they’ll handle their respective roles. “Stiletto” (2008) features some great names in cinema, including Tom Berenger, Michael Biehn, William Forsythe, D.B. Sweeney, Tom Sizemore and others. All of these guys have provided some solid performances in the past and, for the most part, they’re not half bad here. The biggest problem the film runs into is that everyone else who isn’t one of the aforementioned veterans, well… quite frankly, sucks. “Stiletto” is sold as a pure revenge flick, appropriate since it opens with a couple of cold-blooded murders as executed by the film’s lead, Raina (Stana Katic). She spends the course of the film hunting down random men and killing them in some creatively grotesque ways, all in an attempt to avenge her kidnapped sister. Following hot on her trail is Beck (Paul Sloan), a detective who’s trying to figure out why someone is killing all of these career criminals. It really is that simple. The biggest gripe I had with this film, aside from some shoddy acting, was the revenge plot itself. Now, I don’t necessarily mind if a film likes to keep the audience guessing as to why the vengeance is required, but at least have a good payoff when it’s explained at the end. Without giving anything away, Raina probably could have just asked the man she blames, Virgil Vadalos (Tom Berenger), a simple question and none of this would have been necessary. I like my revenge films to pack a wallop by really giving us something heinous to motivate the avenger. Alas, such is not the case here. On the stronger side of things, we do get some good actors doing some good acting here. Now, they might have seemed like they were doing a better job than usual because all of the non-name actors are atrocious, but the casting certainly could have been worse. Leading the pack is Tom Berenger. Ol’ Tom sure has packed on some weight since I last saw him in a film, but he’s still a solid actor and his role here is rather substantial, though I’m at a loss as to exactly how he survives a brutal run-in early on. Michael Biehn plays Virgil’s right-hand man, Lee. Biehn is a total psychopath in this role. I’ve always been a fan of his work, so having him play a good supporting character lent the film some credence in my eyes. Tom Sizemore plays a guy named Large Bills who loves money, hookers and drugs. Yep, that’s a stretch alright. William Forsythe is probably the best actor in the bunch here, but he’s got such a horrendous accent going on here that it made me laugh more than anything. Still, the man brings such intensity to every film he’s in that it’s hard not to enjoy watching his act. D.B. Sweeney shows up long enough to be tortured, quite graphically I might add. I’ll tell you what, though, I loved him in the underrated “Fire in the Sky” (1993). Also along for the ride are Dominique Swain as a former junkie, Kelly Hu as a fellow detective, James Russo as a neo-Nazi skinhead, David Proval as a Middle Eastern auto mechanic and two actors who have played Leatherface from the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" series, R.A. Mihailoff and Andrew Bryniarski. As I said, lots of familiar faces seem to pop up all over this film. But, with the bad comes the good… and the other actors here sure bring it. Our lead, Stana Katic, looks to be going through the standard revenge motions as Raina. Sure, she dishes out some nasty violence, but I never bought into her as a being capable of half the things she pulls off. Without picking everyone apart, suffice it to say that no one else in the cast shines through. They don’t even do a good job of complementing the seasoned actors here; they just come across more like mannequins for them to act against. If bad acting and a weak revenge plot don’t bother you that much, then you’ll be happy with the carnage on display. I was seriously surprised at how grisly some of the death scenes were. Plenty of the red stuff flows here, courtesy of Joe Colwell, whose IMDB resume shows a healthy selection of horror films on his slate. It’s no wonder he can sling the crimson grue all over the screen. Director Nick Vallelonga looks to be something of a renaissance man, as his IMDB page shows that he not only directs, but is an actor, writer and producer. I wouldn’t say he has much of a signature visual style, but he does a competent enough job to keep the film flowing. One thing you don’t want in a film like this is a lot of drag time, so the brisk pace is welcomed.
Video
The 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer is slightly washed out during some dark scenes, and it could be sharper, but the overall image isn’t too terrible. It’s obvious that this was a low-budget film, so I can’t fault this for not looking pristine. There is a minor level of film grain present throughout, though it does get slightly worse towards the film’s climax. It’s only a couple of notches above watching a widescreen VHS tape.
Audio
The English Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound track isn’t remarkable, but it does come to life when needed. The film’s track is heavy on the front and center speakers, so surrounds don’t get many opportunities to chime in. When they do, however, it does a good job of filling out the track. No hisses or noise of any kind was detected, so I’ll give this a pass. There is also an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo track included. Subtitles are available in English for the hearing impaired and Spanish.
Extras
The only extras we get, you guessed it, are the film's theatrical trailer which runs for 1 minute 6 seconds and bonus trailers for the following are included: - “Way of War” runs for 1 minute and 8 seconds. - “Retrograde” runs for 35 seconds. - “Contract Killers” runs for 50 seconds. - “Smoke Jumper” runs for 57 seconds.
Overall
I don’t have any problem with female revenge tales, as Tarantino’s "Kill Bill" series (2003-2004) proved that they can be immensely satisfying, but the revenge itself is too weak here to be effective. Some solid acting from a few veterans does give the film a boost, but it’s not enough to help it rise above mediocrity.
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