Flawed, but entertaining, this will not be remembered as a high point for any of the participants in front of or behind the camera (including writer Sylvester Stallone), but it is a satisfying and swiftly paced B movie which functions as a decent showcase for its star. Jason Statham, returning to more comfortable action-hero ground after delivering a strong dramatic performance in the wonderful and undervalued crime drama Redemption earlier this year, plays an undercover policeman who retires and moves with his daughter to a farmhouse in rural Louisiana after a dangerous operation gone wrong and later the death of his wife. Their serene new start is derailed when a schoolyard fight in which his daughter is involved turns many of the town's small-minded and vicious citizens against him, including "Gator," a volatile drug dealer played by James Franco.

For people who are still fond of old-fashioned action cinema, Statham is always a pleasure to watch brood and kick, punch, shoot, and slice his way through his foes, and this is as true as ever here. The film also utilizes Louisiana for more than its production enticing tax incentives, from the beauty of an open field in the sunshine with cottonwood in the wind to the macabre atmosphere and menace of a bog at night. Two elements of the film, alas, fall short of expectations: Franco, who has proven in recent years to be a bit of a madman disinterested in conventional respectability, delivers a fairly sleepy performance and never emerges as the type of antagonistic, fierce psycho which could have elevated the overall enterprise. Also, after developing a spot-on sense of mounting dread punctuated with moments of eruptive violence, the third-act siege on the protagonist's home (a scene we know is coming because of the film's clear debt to Straw Dogs) is over far too soon, amounting to a few shots fired and a few truncated chases instead of the extended action and suspense set piece I hoped for.

B

HOMEFRONT

I was actually into this almost all the way until the very end. I liked Statham and the little girl. She was really nice. The small town setting and dealing with bully's family members was good. I liked the action sequences in the film. I even liked Wynona and Franco for a bit, but after the big showdown at the house it got a bit over the top for me. The film was reminding me of something I'd seen before at the house showdown but I couldn't recall, so that felt deja vu-ish.

Grade - B

I believe it would be a stronger film if the conflict remained outsider versus small-town menaces rather than tying the motorcycle gang from the prologue into the action. Statham's character having extensive DEA investigation files just collecting dust in his farmhouse is an absurd contrivance, for one.

Yes!!

There are also a few story threads which go nowhere. The film spends at least a couple minutes, for instance, developing the guidance counselor, played by Rachelle Lefevre from Under the Dome, as a potential ally or love interest for Jason Statham's character, but then she vanishes entirely from the film. And nothing much ever comes from the assertion Clancy Brown's character, the local cop, has an uneasy partnership with Gator.

Very disappointing, but not terrible. Why even cast Franco if you aren't going to use him? Any scrub could have played that role and the movie would have been the same. Franco needed to shine for this movie to work. Otherwise it's just a typical Jason Statham movie. Do we really need to see 20 scenes detailing how great of a father he is?

The opening twenty minutes is pretty great though. Statham with biker hair, sliding on the street while shooting at a car till it explodes and Franco's one good scene with a baseball bat are all in here and they are by far the best moments of the movie.

I initially gave it a C+ but now feel that was too generous. Poor writing, editing and a complete waste of Mr. Franco knock it down to a C.

I enjoyed this for what it was. Yeah there are plot holes and undeveloped stories (guidance counselor for one), but I was entertained and I think most people would like it just fine.

B

Homefront

While the action scenes suffered from fast edits (which make it hard to see what's going on) and the teacher-Statham love plot wasn't built upon, the story and script are very good (obviously, since they were written by Stallone). Great performances by James Franco and especially Kate Bosworth, and great action with bad ass Statham. This is a top-tier addition to the Statham action library.

I cannot wait to watch it again. I had a smile on my face throughout as I spotted Stallone's influence in the dialogue. I really love films like this; the small town loner vs. the gang of crooks, much in the vein of The Rock's Walking Tall, and Stallone's very own First Blood. Clearly, due to low box office takings, there won't be a sequel, but I'd be up for one if it was ever greenlit (and the story is definitely there).

B+