Death Sentence

Year: 2007
Director: James Wan
Cast: Kevin Bacon, Garrett Hedlund, Kelly Preston, John Goodman, Aisha Tyler, Jordan Garrett


I loved Saw, the crafty killer thriller by James Wan that has spawned 3 sequels so far, and a fourth one coming up. It's interesting to note that Wan was born in Malaysia. Something I can be proud of. And now Wan tries his hand at a different genre.

Death Sentence is a revenge flick not unlike The Brave One and The Punisher. It starts off with a collection of home videos of Nick Hume and his family. Nick is an insurance executive who has a loving family, made up of his wife Helen and his two sons, Brendan and Lucas. One day, all that changes when Nick is on his way home with Brendan after the latter's hockey game at school. They stop by a gas station, where a gang of punks suddenly turns up and brutally murders the owner and Brendan.

Nick and his family are shaken by the incident, of course. The cops manage to catch the boy who did it, but then the prosecution lawyer tells Nick that his testimony will only get him jailed for a few years. This doesn't sit well with the grieving father, who decides to waive his testimony and go after the punk on his own. He succeeds later in following the kid, whose name is Joe Darley, and kills him.

Killing him wasn't exactly easy for Nick, especially since he's just a father seeking retribution, and not a cold blooded murderer. But he's got bigger problems, when Joe's older brother Billy is looking for retribution of his own after learning about who killed his brother. Billy and his gang attack Nick and his family, which sets off a chain reaction of events, a tit for tat that constantly ends with violence. But can Nick put an end to it once and for all?

James Wan did a tremendous job with Saw, by using dim lighting and brooding sets. He does almost the same here in Death Sentence. It's a different genre, it's not horror. It's not an action film, but more of a drama, of family, losing the people you love, the emotions that you experience from that, and the actions that result from it. You'd think that Wan wouldn't be able to do justice to it if you've seen his films, but he doesn't do a bad job at all.

Casting wise, Kevin Bacon gives a sterling performance as Nick Hume. You'll feel his pain, his anger, his fear as well as his guilt for turning into the killer he has to become to fight this war and protect his family. Garrett Hedlund makes a nice turn as a villain by playing the ruthless Billy Darley. Gone are the memories of Hedlund being the naive Patrocles in Troy. But what I truly love watching is John Goodman as Billy's father Bones, a badass car body shop owner that sells guns on the side. Despite his short screen time, his appearances are very memorable.

From my point of view, Wan didn't turn this into a straightforward action flick, probably because it wasn't his intention. It's all about revenge, and what it does to a person, and the people caught in the crossfire. He succeeds in bringing that point out, as shown through some poignant dramatic sequences. However, despite the unflinching violence, the film could use a few more suspense and thrills here and there. The ending was quite anti-climactic for me. Thank goodness the dramatic turns by the talented cast saves it from being mediocre.

Less thrilling than The Punisher, but more to the point than The Brave One. It's like a modern day western now that I think of it. Not bad, all in all. (3.5/5)