The Eliminator
2016 was another eventful year for Scott Adkins, a Warrior from the West Midlands. With The Eliminator being the last of eight films he was credited during the year that included Doctor Strange, Grimsby, and Hard Target 2 among others.
In that year, this was one of his best movies along with the Boyka: Undisputed. Many may be turned off by this title, produced by WWE studios, if they are not interested in wrestling. They shouldn’t let this be the case though, having watched a number of WWE productions, this has to be one of their strongest efforts. Sure it’s no movie making masterpiece, but it delivers what you would expect from a movie featuring Adkins as the star. Nunn is no stranger to his star attraction having worked with Scott on the Green Street series and so he has just about enough intimate knowledge about Scott to realize what he is in for.
When you combine that with the credible acting resume and background of Stew Bennett- a 6’6” Ex bare knuckle boxing champion, marine biologist and former WWE wrestler who is the real deal or a formidable assassin. Brace yourself, as Bennett was no stranger to acting, having appeared in 2013’s Dead Man Down starring Colin Farrell.
Along with a number of T.V show appearances in the States. He has also starred in British actioner Vengeance (2017) alongside Brit Kickers like Gary Daniels who only recently premiered in New York and have set a London premiere for March, just hope he’s as good playing the hero as he is playing a villain in Eliminators.
The film starts with the character Tom, a ripped ex-U.S agent, doing his morning routine workout and there is sincerity in his movements as he performs his task seamlessly, however, the fact remains that he wakes up before the alarm, which is indicative of dedication to something or is it something else causing an internal disability to obtain the peace of a restful slumber.
One thing that I find a bit negative about this production is to try to apply American accents to some of the characters. This wont be a problem in his latest movie The Accident Man, a comic book adaptation that he both produces and stars in. Lets go back to this flick, when a gang of two thug looking gangsters barges into his new home. Tom gets rid of the trio faster than Bryan Mills chop of the wind pipe.
“Yea, you’re a deserving opponent, credit where it’s due.”
Tim Man (Acts Of Vengeance, Ninja Shadow Of A Tear), the wizard of fight choreography for the film, created and directed the film’s short and almost desperate fights. The action here, it’s quick, crisp and focused, one doesn’t have to endure seeing a bunch of guys standing still and waiting to get kicked in the face sometime.
This is different from the Raid movies, where one would negotiate that the choreography is quite more so than it ought to be a lot of the time. Some may contest this analysis, stating that this is not Scott Adkins’ finest display of action, yet I believe it holds its own amongst his other physically intensive performances. There is a short, but intense two against one brawl in a cramped cable car over London where our hero faces two bad guys who want to make a living by capturing Tom. More of a buzz for me were the one on one encounters of Tom’s with hitman Bishop. This I shall return to later in this maudlin drivel.
Scottish actor James Cosmo (Braveheart, Troy, London Heist) is one of the oldest without a doubt the best actors of Scotland with enormous talent and wit even today. Though there was very little to deliver in terms of the scrip bar he still manages to be very effective in the movie. This is not something that most actors would be capable of accomplishing, assuming that they had the same minor part. Ty Glaser portrays Stacey, Toms daughter’s social worker very well. Olivia Mace was also effective in her small role as gangster Cooper’s sinister aide Hannah.
There are not many female cast members apart from those two minor roles. Special mention to Daniel Caltagirone playing Ray, Tom old Federal Agent friend who provides assistance to him. This pair is part of one of my favorite scenes. Tom and Ray are in a safe house behind a bomb proof armored door. Bishop has no choice but to resort to other methods to reach the two. It is a well constructed sequence which builds the suspense beautifully.
“It was nice to go through this, but this is the end of this fight.”
This is an unexpected good movie. There is in fact, always something happening on screen so the flow of the film never feels slow or drags. It is understandable that for independent film, the amount of time and money they had to work with was limited, so it’s impressive that they were able to produce what they did. In watching the film, this is certainly the case.
Many resources can be completed at night as it is less costly than shooting at day. On screen, Stu Bennet like Adkins, is quite believable and comes across as a harsh yet committed assassin. In fact, both characters are very headstrong and will put up quite a show before they throw in the towel. There is a nice cat and mouse element to the film as both of them constantly chase each other. However, it is intriguing to note that when they finally clash, it is not some boring tussle.
Tim Man has smoothly integrated some Pro Wrestling choreography in his fights. It’s a known cliché that whenever a Wrestler is in an Action Movie, it isn’t long until you see the wrestler let loose some signature slams and showdowns. These are usually very out of place compared to the rest of the performance, but here, it does not seem so and the overall screen combat is for the better.
Most of the action centers around Martial Arts yet there’s a fair amount of gun-fu as well. It’s not John Woo level, but it does the job in this case. Following a short shooting scene first at an abandoned farmhouse which is where Bishop and Tom have their last encounter. It’s another cinematic struggle that never over stays its welcome, and feels exactly like it was crafted well. Some would say it is maybe too short, but personally I do not see it that way.
Eliminators is an entertaining direct to video release and is made even better with the two leads performing great physically. Not to forget, the numerous stunt men who put their lives on the line to make it all work. If there is one thing I took from this film it is this. If you ever find yourself restrained on a hospital bed and a scary assassin is after you. Just a small matter of being good at a lock pick for those in this situation, all the paper a nurse uses her clipboard is envelope material and all it takes is a small amount of pressure to get out. For the few modern martial arts movie fans that have not seen this, go see it now. If you enjoy Scott Adkins films, this is a must watch.
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