Havoc

If you loved Gareth Evans' "The Raid" films, you know what you're in for with his new action-packed thrill ride, HAVOC. If you're not familiar, (go watch them immediately) buckle up for a John Wick/Kill Bill style film packed with non-stop bullets, hand to hand combat and weapons of every variety.

Tom Hardy (The Dark Knight, Mad Max: Fury Road) stars as Walker, a beat up detective dealing with the aftermath of a massive drug deal gone very wrong.

On Christmas Eve, his life in shambles, he's pulled into a wide conspiracy & gang war that spreads across both sides of the law.

Hardy's terrific at playing Walker as a wound tight/at the end of his rope lawman who's strayed too far from the straight and narrow.

Evans stages action with a unique, relentless pace that pulls you in at 90 miles an hour and never lets go. I'm a huge fan, built off the brilliance of his 2011 "The Raid: Redemption" and its sequel, that rare superior follow up to the original, "The Raid 2" in 2014.

He does things with his camera that seem impossible and has a Tarantino like flair for plunging you face-to-face with harpoons, cleavers and automatic weapons of every roaring variety.

Remember when John Woo was in vogue? His action was undeniably creative, but after a decade, the constant slow motion and flying doves got a little rote.

Evans is Woo's opposite. Everything is accelerated, over speed, blood and bullets tearing through walls and flesh at an incredible pace. The martial arts battles are laugh out loud thrilling. When he does use slow motion, it seems more impactful compared to the rest of the pace.

There were at least three scenes that left all of us watching in breathless, "WOW!" mode for what we just lived through alongside the characters.

The cast is terrific.

Timothy Olyphant (Justified) is Detective Vincent, former squad partner with Walker with some questionable motives.

Jessie Mei Li (Last Night in Soho) is Walker's new partner with plenty of brains and some fierce fighting skills.

Forest Whitaker (Rogue One, Black Panther) is a powerful politician whose son Charlie (Justin Cornwell) kicks off the gang war that drives the story.

I see some viewers online bitching about the action, the pace, the photography and I just have to laugh. When someone with the visionary visual skills of Evans delivers this type of rollercoaster ride, just turn your brain off and enjoy. Every film doesn't have to be "Citizen Kane". Have we lost the ability to just enjoy a popcorn thriller?

I love a thoughtful film as much as anyone, but I'm equally enamored of a brainless, violent thriller that blazes new visual territory.

There are moments that I can't wait to watch again, including the night club battle with every side of the turf battle arriving at once, the opening car chase sequence that manages to make a washing machine a weapon and the slam bang finale.

Hardy is great as always, while remaining the one mainstream actor that I feel like I need to have subtitles on to understand what the hell he's saying half the time.

Shot in 2021 and in post production since, Evans and Hardy's adventure landed last night on Netflix and delivers plenty of "Heat", "Kill Bill" and "Predator" style thrills. If you're looking for brainy challenges, keep running.

If you're in the mood for light speed assaults of bullets, blood and escapes, this one wreaks HAVOC all the way to a fun B.

It's no "Raid", but it's still bloody head and dislocated shoulders above the pack.