MovieChat Forums > Safe (2012) Discussion > Needlessly convoluted plot

Needlessly convoluted plot

posted 12 years ago by Kroyall1962
6 replies | jump to latest

I don't understand why the writers had to introduce so many sub plots in what should have been a straightforward action film. The guy is an ex cop and MMA fighter who stumbles into some idiotic situation involving a Chinese girl and the mob that is after her? Why?

The minute I saw the subtitles I knew the movie was going off the rails. Seems to me you pick a storyline and stay with it. Between the crooked cops, the Russians, the Chinese et al. it is just getting tedious. 33 minutes in and finally there is a decent fight sequence. Sheesh.

[–] LibbyLuWho 12 years ago

I've got to agree with you. He is a cage fighter, maybe used to be a garbage man, was a NY cop, and some kind of special forces? That is a little overkill. Plus the crooked cops playing both the Asian mafia and the Russian mafia, and having known him previously, AND the mayor and the mayor's assistant are in on it. OH and also the mayor's assistant was special forces, too....

Gives me a headache trying to keep up! Overall, I thought the action scenes were pretty good, but they could have lost a couple of the plot threads and still had a decent movie.

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[–] VanSlammage 12 years ago

I think the overly convoluted plot separates this from every other Jason Statham film and makes it more memorable than most of his other straight action movies.

[–] Legendary_Badass 12 years ago

The first couple of plots were surprisingly fresh. It was when Luke started talking Russian that I felt the movie was headed the wrong way. Don't get me wrong, it was better than I expected. I just thought it was forced how he had ties to everything that's going down. He went from an interesting broke former cop, former MMA fighter into being a overskilled military contract killer with a past that was cooked up in the last 30 minutes. We get it, he's Rambo.

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[–] alekesam 11 years ago

I think you guys are separating too many of Luke's occupations. He's not a former MMA fighter and former cop, he was a military guy first and foremost and brought in for some special police task force (which is still within reason of his military training) and dimed the guys out and quit. Ultimately, he ended up in the ring as a MMA fighter, only turned former when the fixed fight ended up not being fixed, which led to his wife getting killed.

When you look at the progression that way it makes more sense/makes it more believable.

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[–] taijiquan12 11 years ago

Regardless, it was really all thrown at you very quickly, and wasn't well done in my opinion. I thought it could have definitely used some shaving down, and that he shouldn't have had any ties to the police at all.

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[–] Portlis 10 years ago

Completely agree. I came here to post nearly the exact same thing. For as "simple" as the plot really was, it truly was needlessly convoluted and confusing. Very poorly done all around.

I can shut my brain off and enjoy a Statham movie every now and then, but this one just wasn't very good at all.