At first it’s just another crime film with a lot of action, but once you get deeper into the storyline a mystery evolves into a nice drama that entertains. Backtrace has a good cast to boot and the direction by Brian A. Miller works nicely with not a lot of boredom in his action film.
Three men, Donavan “Mac” MacDonald (Matthew Modine), John Truby (Swen Temmel), and Ike Foster (Sergio Tizzuto), have just knocked off a bank for $20 million and pull up at a rendezvous spot to drop off shares. Having stashed their share of the take before arriving things go south with Truby and Tizzuto being taken out and Mac left for dead.
Entering the picture is Detective Sykes (Sylvester Stallone) who becomes the lead officer covering the robbery and then the scene of the shootout that left Mac with retrograde amnesia. Seven years later we find Mac in a secured medical psycho center where he still has memory loss from the incident.
From this point a nice plot develops involving the reasons for the robbery and involvement in others who want part of the booty. Director Brian A. Miller (Vice, Reprisal) keeps his film moving at a fast tempo with Mac moving in an out of harm’s way as others look to bring him back to where the $20 million is stashed. Miller makes his film very exciting with a lot of gun play, explosions and perilous confrontations.
It was great to see the 60-yr-old Matthew Modine on the screen acting like he was his younger self in some of the action scenes. Modine as Mac has to show how affected he is from his aggravated amnesia and he pulls it off without a hitch. Having to go up against the much younger antagonists he holds his own in each scene.
I am disappointed in Sylvester Stallone for his role of Detective Sykes as he’s in the film very little yet gets top billing on the box art. He looks like he’s walking through the film with his character being a part any actor could have played. It’s a ploy here to get his fans to watch the movie, but for me I was not at all impressed with his character. He must have owed someone a favor or is he just spiraling down taking any role he can get. I hope it is the former. I see that he’s announced “The Expendables 4”, “Rambo 5: Last Blood” and “Escape Plan: The Extractors” that should be released in the near and way future. Go get ’em Rocky.
BONUS FEATURES:
“Making Backtrace” Director Miller and his cast talk about the film from their perspective.
“Cast & Crew Interviews” Director Brian A, Miller, and actors Christopher McDonald, Ryan Guzman, and Colin Egglesfield talk about their roles in the movie.
Backtrace has been rated R for violence and some language. The violence is very strong and one fight scene has so much gunfire you would think it was WWII. The movie is available on Blu-ray/DVD combo pack, Blu-ray and DVD.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A good film for home viewing. (2.5 out of 5 Stars)
Specifications and additional video information:
Cast: Sylvester Stallone., Matthew Modine, Colin Egglesfield, Meadow Williams, Ryan Guzman, Christopher McDonald, Swen Temmel, Baylee Curran, Jenna Willis, Tyler Jon Olson, Heather Johansen, Tamara Callie, Alanna Tremblay, Sergio Tizzuto
Director: Brian A. Miller
Written by: Mike Maples
MPAA Rating: R for violence and some language
Genre: Crime, Drama
Running Time: 1 hr. 32 min.
Video Release Date: February 19, 2019
Original Theatrical Release Date: December 14, 2018
Language: English
Reviewed Format: Blu-ray
Audio: DTS HD Master Audio 5.1
Video: 1080p HD 16X9 Aspect Ratio 1.85:1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Number of Discs: 2 discs, plus Digital Code
Distributed by: Lionsgate Films
Released in: Blu-ray/DVD Combo with Digital HD, DVD, Blu-ray
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
