Rating: 
Summary: Too good to be true!
Review: Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment makes their foray into the motion picture business with this action-adventure. "The Rock" gives a pretty good performance as a bounty hunter who is tasked to bring back a family member (Seann William Scott) from an Amazon jungle. The stunts are almost too good to be true. The story almost falls apart with the ridicuous dialogue. However, the action is enough to make this a pretty reasonable movie to endure, much like bubble gum.
Rating: 
Summary: Rocking the Amazon Like He Always Does: Above Average Action
Review: "Rundown" is a surprisingly good action film, perhaps better than "The Scorpion King," starring The Rock, whose mustles and humors will always entertain you. Slick, funny, and most of all bone-crunching, this is what a good action flick should be.The Rock is "Beck" who wants to own an Italian restaurant (seriouly, and he is a cook), but now has to work as a "retrieval expert" for a mobster. Now he is assigned another job, hopefully the last one, of bringing back the gangster's son Travis (Seann William Scott) from the Amazon, where he is seeking for a treasure somewhere in the jungle. The Rock flies there; among the beautiful rain forests, he finds Travis, who is not happy to meet him. To make things more complicated, greedy baddie Hatcher (Christopher Walken with his usual quirky mannerism), the king of "El Dolado," a goldmine where the natives are forced to work for criminaly low wages, steps in, to require the secrets of the treasure Travis is after. Against the backdrop of the green jungles, the great actions go on with the Rock in top form. One of the unique points is that he refuses to use guns, relying on his physical agility and strength, and it works nicely in each moment. The gravity-defying stunts of the Rock are all well-choreographed, without using too much wire-works. They are exciting and funny, the best kind of actions coming from Hollywood. Rosalio Dawson and Ewen Bremner appear as support, and they are good. But the real scene-stealer is Christopher Walken, who can infuse slight touch of comic (perhaps without his knowing) into the simplest word like "wow." Actually, he is the kind of the villain whose first appearance on the screen would make you cheer and applause eben if you know that he is a villain. That is something you are not going to see in Hollywood films everyday. The fascinating jungle location (of Hawaii, in fact) works well as a bonus point to "Rundown," great action film. And don't miss the cameo of Arnie whose short line is very meaningful.
Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly Good
Review: And very funny. I can honestly say I seriously doubted I would like this film and I only went to see it because it was on and I was there. I'd never seen a movie with The Rock before or even watched any wrestling so I was kind of dubious as to whether or not he would be any good. In fact he was a great actor, full of personality and charisma, willing to make fun of himself and was great with the action. The Rock is definitely the next Arnie. Vin (Donald Duck) Diesel is the next Jean Claude Van Damme. Seann William Scott was also pretty funny in a rare NOT Stifler performance. As an actor he does have genuine talent that's usually wasted in low-brow teen sex comedies. The Rundown is a sort of Indiana Jones-lite movie. The Rock plays a bounty hunter/chef who is sent to track down Seann William Scott south of the border. Against his will The Rock ends up on a trek through the depths of the Mexican jungle looking for some ancient artefact. Unoriginal it may be but director Peter Berg keeps it moving with plenty of stunts, action and laughs. Christopher Walken's villain is a bit of a cardboard cut-out but how evil are you allowed to be in a PG-13? I look forward to the next movie starring The Rock. With talks of a third Conan movie I can only imagine him being the best choice. And keep a lookout for Arnie in the nightclub at the very beginning. 'Have fun' is his only line. And fun The Rock will certainly have as the next BIG action hero. Keep a lookout for Scottish actor Ewan Bremner (a zillion times the 'star' Ewan MacGregor is) in a funny role as a slob pilot.
Rating:
Summary: Rock Lays the Smackdown
Review: "The Rundown" features the Rock in his second outing in a Hollywood leading role and he lays the smackdown. THE STORY: Beck (The Rock) is a bounty hunter sent on his "last case" to bring back his boss' errant son, petty hustler Travis (Sean William "Stifler" Scott) who is running amok in the Brazilian Amazon. While in the Amazon Beck runs afoul of the ruthless local Overlord, becomes part of the people's revolution and along with Travis finds the secret fortune hidden deep in the jungle. THE COOL THINGS: Overall, this was a very satisfying action-comedy flick. The fight scenes and big money stunts were awesome and the comedic chemistry between Rock and Stifler was top-notch (monkeys and paralyzing beans anyone?). The Rock's billing as the "2nd Coming of Schwarzenegger" is pretty well justified by this film. The story wasn't the best but I seriously doubt anyone's checking this film out for a good story. You're watching this to see some bad guys get their butts kicked and this film definitely delivers. BEST SCENES: 1. The Capoeira Fight 2. Monkey Troubles 3. The South America Bar Fight 4. The Paralysis scene 5. The Whip Fight 6. The Final Battle THE DVD EXTRAS: As is common among most DVD releases nowadays we've got a truckload of extras on this DVD. Here's what you've got: 1. Commentary track with Director Peter Berg and The Rock 2. Commentary track by Producers Kevin Misher and Marc Abraham 3. "Rumble in the Jungle" - 10 minute featurette on fight and stunt training 4. "The Amazons - Hawaii Style" - 5 ½ minute featurette on filming in a Hawaiian rain forest 5. "Apetite for Destruction" - 8 ½ minute featurette on filming the big scenes including the falling water tower and cattle stampede 6. "The Rundown Uncensored" - 5 ½ minute featurette on the stunt monkeys 7. "Running Down the Town" - 4 minute featurette about the construction of the "Brazilian Town" set 8. "Walken's World" - 5 ½ minute featurette look into the world of the main villain Hatcher 9. 8 deleted scenes 10. Cast and Filmmaker Bios THE VERDICT: Overall, with the strong action sequences, the hilarious interplay with Rock and Stifler and backed by a truckload of extras, "The Rundown" is a definite recommendation whether you want to purchase the DVD or simply just chill with it for a weekend rental. THE GRADES: The Movie: 4 stars
The Extras: 5 stars
Overall: 4.5 stars Highest Recommendation
Rating:
Summary: Just Great Fun!
Review: The Rock lives up to his billing in this action adventure flick that is just plain fun! The story is fast-paced, filled with action and smart. Dwayne Johnson (The Rock) has all the moves, muscles, and mouth to make this a rocking good story. Classic good vs evil plot makes this reminiscent of the Raiders of the Lost Ark trilogy. While the Rock gets top billing, Christopher Walken is the perfect bad-guy-you-love-to-hate. The dialogue is crisp and surprisingly witty. This is a sit-back and enjoy your popcorn and cold beverage type of movie.
Rating:
Summary: Not as exciting or as funny as I'd expected.
Review: Even with three movies released (well, technically four, if you count The Mummy Returns), it's still difficult to tell if The Rock is going to have a strong film career. Reasons? He's not much of an actor and his movies haven't exactly "rocked" the box office, if you'll pardon the pun. But he's got plenty of charisma that just radiates "movie star," and that speaks volumes more than anything solid talent can when you're starring in a brainless action flick. And brainless action flick The Rundown is, with its generic title and equally generic plot, starring The Rock as bounty hunter/aspiring chef Beck who heads into the Amazon to retrieve amateur archaeologist Travis (Seann William Scott) at the orders of Travis' own mob-boss father. But Travis is highly reluctant to leave, seeing as he's on the verge of discovering a gold artifact worth millions, but said artifact is also desired by two warring groups, slave-driving operators led by Hatcher (Christopher Walken) and the local rebels fighting Hatcher's mining establishment, all with Beck and Travis caught in the middle. Despite the fact that The Rundown is a bit of a return to the 80s-style of bone-crunching action extravaganzas, it comes up short real fast. A perfect example of a missed opportunity comes in the film's opening scene; after a delightful "pass the torch" cameo from Arnold Schwarzenegger, The Rock lays the smack down on the entire offensive line of football team for the sake of a superbowl ring. This should have been a hilarious, wildly thrilling setpiece, but the constant quick cuts and flashing lights make the action almost incomprehensible. After this brawl, the film slows down considerably during its endlessly draggy exposition before finally picking up with a decent barfight about a half-hour into the picture. It's at this point we realize the film has the same basic problem that permeates Arnold's mindless action thrillers; the sight of a hulking hero beating down on smaller opponents just doesn't generate much in the way of suspense or excitement. Most Arnold flicks usually compensated for this with great one-liners or even bigger villains, but in The Rundown's case, there aren't nearly enough laughs and the action just doesn't thrill. Where the film does truly come to life is at the forty-minute mark, when a full-bladdered but hands-tied-behind-his-back Travis desperately has to pee, leading to several mishaps that result in a baboon just hankerin' to fornicate with Beck; you have to see it to believe it. This is, unfortunately, the only scene where the film genuinely comes to life. The following action sequence, a showdown between Beck and several quick-footed local rebels, is pretty inventive, but marred by quick cuts, the obvious use of stuntmen, and an awful soundtrack that employs beating drums and, of all things, a whistle. The final battle is almost a complete letdown, with director Peter Berg once again unwisely editing the film in MTV-style. It's when the action slows down enough that the real impressive moments stand out, like Beck's fight with the whip-slingers. And let me say this, when our hero makes a huge point throughout the film about never using guns and we the audience actually find this pretty unique, it's very disappointment to see the climax feature the hero resorting to shooting down all the bad guys, without even cracking a smart-ass one-liner, to boot. The cast is actually pretty engaging for this sort of film (with the only real weak link being Rosario Dawson, who's utterly bland); I kinda like The Rock, I also kinda like Seann William Scott, ditto for Ewen Bremner, and I definitely like Christopher Walken, but the film puts this cast's considerable action and/or comedic talent to waste. This is an average action film, period.
** 1/2 out of *****
Rating:
Summary: A movie for guys who like movies.
Review: This a fun action flick, pure and simple. The cameo nod from Arnold Schwarzenegger in the beginning along with the exhortation to "have fun" is meant for the viewer as well as the Rock. Throw in Christopher Walken as the bad guy (which he does so well) and you have the perfect movie for a relaxing afternoon with some pals and a few beers.
Rating: 
Summary: Much better than you'd expect
Review: Well, I wasn't expecting a great deal from this film. In fact, I probably wouldn't have seen it at all if it hadn't gotten surprisingly good reviews. The Rock was pretty forgettable in 'The Scorpion King', although not terrible, but he puts in a great performance here. Tasked with the retrieval of a wayward son, he ends up in a three (or four) way hunt for a mysterious golden idol, along the way enountering everything from homicidal gold miners to jungle rebels to packs of angry monkeys. It is one funny movie, and the action scenes are great. Most importantly, the cast has both charisma and quality, and the dialogue isn't nearly as stilted as you'd expect in a typical action film. You can tell they all had fun making the movie, perhaps because it was actually filmed in Hawaii. Regardless, you should check this out even if you have doubts about it, because it will win you over.
Rating:
Summary: A New Action Hero For The New Millenium
Review: Since Schwarzenegger went into politics, Stallone seems trapped along with Steven Seagal in straight- to- video hell and Bruce Willis hasn't made an action picture since "Armageddon" in '98, there hasn't really been a decent action star. Jet Li and assorted Rapper/wannabe -actors just ain't getting the job done.
So, along comes The Rock in his first non- "Scorpion King" role and delivers the goods everyone has been waiting for. He is funny, yet restrained and laconic and enormously likeable. He has screen presence to burn and is well supported here by Sean William Scott doing his usual "American Pie" Stifler schtick and the beutiful and mysterious Rosario Dawson and of course film legend Christopher Walken as the evil/funny bad guy. The script is formulaic and predictable but great fun due to the talent involved. If The Rock can get more interesting roles and dialogue, he could be around for a long time.
Rating:
Summary: The Rock lays the smackdown on action movies
Review: I'm a huge fan of The Rock to start off with, but I've gotta say that this movies shows that he has what it takes to be an action movie star. The Rock actually plays the straight man for the most part in this movie, but even without being totally over the top, you can't deny the charisma he has and the way it comes across on screen. The plot isn't anything special, but there aren't many action movies out there with superb plots. The Rock plays Beck, a bounty hunter, who's sent to the mining town of El Dorado to bring back Travis, played be Seann William Scott. Christopher Walken is just chewing up the scenery as Hatcher, the heartless boss of El Dorado, and doesn't make things so easy on Beck to take his latest capture home. You get all the standard action movie stuff including the big shootout at the end. But the actors all seem like they're having a blast and that really comes across on screen. And for those of you who like action, the first ten minutes of the movie alone has The Rock taking out half a football team in a nightclub! Plus, the final showdown is just a relentless onslaught of gunfire, fist fights, and explosions. If you're a fan of The Rock then you'll love this movie. If you're not a fan of The Rock, but love action movies, you'll love this movie. Check it out if you're a fan of The Rock, action movies, or both.
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