Nicolas
Cage stars as a criminal whose prison stretch is cut short due to a chronic
illness. Once on the outside, he
reconnects with his son (Noah Le Gros), collects a stash of hidden loot, and
begins to live it up in a swanky hotel. Before
long, he sets out to get revenge on the men who put him behind bars. That is, if his condition doesn’t get in the
way.
A
Score to Settle is similar in some ways to Dying of the Light as both films
revolve around Cage playing terminal heroes trying to set things right before
they kick the bucket. At least that flick had Paul Schrader at the
helm. This one is saddled with a predictable
story, very little action, and a pretty weak revenge plot.
The
bare bones of the story could’ve worked, but the subplot with Cage reconnecting
with the son is flat and uninvolving. Not to mention the fact that the kid’s fate is
predictable every step of the way. Cage’s
cliched relationship with a Hooker with a Heart of Gold® (Karolina Wydra) is
trite and only serves to eat up a lot of screen time. It’s also a shame to see Benjamin Bratt being
wasted in a supporting role as his ex-street compatriot who helps him in his
quest for revenge.
Admittedly,
Cage isn’t given much to work with, but he doesn’t do a whole lot to invigorate
the proceedings with his usual manic touch. Only occasionally does he veer into Cagey Mode.
The scenes where he goes on a shopping
spree offers a tinge of weirdness here and there, and there’s a funny bit where
he intimidates a guy in a butcher shop by aggressively chewing on a sausage.
He does bless us with at least one memorable line reading where he
incredulously wines at the villain, “You think I have beeeeeeef with you?” Ultimately, the rest of the story is so thin
you’ll be wondering where’s the beef?
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