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THE MARINE
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I watched curiously and found that Cena’s presence and deliverance captured the screen time. The rest of the actors and actresses did their part too, but Cena was the main attraction. Minus the over the top black-guy thug Morgan playing the racial card the entire time, I would say that the main three characters (The Tritons and Rome) were acceptable for this type of story. I really enjoyed this film even though it was simple and short; it was also pretty damn intense. This is the type of film you need to see to “get away from it all”. It doesn’t make you think hard, but it captures your attention all the way through. A lot of action movies these days are either A) Too boring because of plot confusion, or B) Trying to achieve too much and failing to capitalize on the extended length. The main reason I liked this film was because of its simplicity. Even though I do enjoy a plot that makes you think (see The Departed), there are times where I just feel the need to relax and be entertained. This is one of them. I would definitely enjoy watching this film again and again but I am going to wait till the DVD come out. But if you got $5.50 and are bored on a weekend, The Marine is definitely worth it in terms of sweetness wholesome entertainment.
This film, however, didn’t deliver on the character development and for that I was disappointed. For me, the movie was over before I knew it. I did enjoy John Triton’s tough guy character, but his wife was another dull blonde who gets taken hostage (how cliché!) and the bad guys were even worse. I didn’t mind the main bad guy Rome because he was just one badass dude. His sidekick girlfriend Angela (Abigail Bianca) was dull and his three other cronies aren’t even worth mentioning. They seemed like they were there to just beat up John Cena, not create a conflict for the main character. If say, the Triton’s had a child and that kid was also taken hostage, this would not only create more drama and conflict, but it would also build more character development. By throwing a kid in the mix, the audience would feel more for the good guys and hate the bad guys guts more. It’s a shame that they didn’t go that route, but all in all it was a very short movie. Director John Bonito definitely has the makings of an action film director, but needs to work on building the characters more as the plot progresses. I suppose maybe that’s the writer’s fault, but who knows when it’s a WWE film (an industry that is all about building characters) and screenwriter Michelle Gallagher only has one other screenplay on her resume.
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Just as Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (best movie thus far being "The
Rundown") made a smooth transition from pro-wrestler into action-star on
the big screen, WWE superstar John Cena’s film debut in “The Marine” did
exactly the same. After being discharged from the United States Marine
Corps, John Triton found it very difficult to adjust to normal everyday
life. He took up a small time security job position at a firm, only to
loose control by beating up two bodyguards and throwing a jackass punk
through a window. Triton then talks to his beautiful wife Kate, played
by the lovely Kelly Carlson, about the stress of not being a Marine
anymore. The two decide to escape from the pressures of everyday life
and leave on a spur-of-the-moment vacation of some sort. Meanwhile, a
dangerous thief (Robert Patrick) controlling a band of killer thugs
becomes involved in Triton’s life by taking his wife hostage.
I was surprised at first of how fast this film flew by. With all of the
excitement and over the edge intense moments, it ended too quickly. Also
there wasn’t enough time to build up character development. That is very
important especially in action flicks such as this. I liked seeing John
Cena’s character fighting Al Qaeda for five minutes more than I did
enjoy him running through the woods chasing baddies. 
It’s style of shoot first, ask no questions took me back to the 1990’s
era of action flicks, which I wholesomely enjoyed watching growing up.
Am I crazy for liking this movie a lot? Probably. Are you crazy for
wanting to go see it now? Not one bit!