324, Shelter

New to Amazon Prime is the latest offering from Jason Statham - and as you'd expect - the plot doesn't require a Masters Degree to work it out.

Now don't get me wrong - I love the predictability of a Statham movie - Regular plot lines normally involve Statham as an ex-hardman - either in-hiding or retired from whatever Black-Ops / Spec-Ops unit he spent a lifetime mastering, now seeking the quiet life but, always manages to have his peace interrupted by either an ex-employer of someone bearing a grudge - or even just being in the wrong place at the wrong time to drag him back in, obliterate entire armies, and move on without a trace.

Shelter is no different - set in Scotland's Outer Hebrides - Statham is a recluse, living on a deserted and treacherous lighthouse island, receiving deliveries only by boat but with a bad storm wrecking the recent supply vessel, killing the Captain and leaving his Niece (Jessie) alone and fighting for her life in the stormy waters, Statham is compelled to help them.  

Back on-shore - the Niece, (Bodhi Rae Breathnach / Hamnet) suffering from a badly damaged ankle forces Mason to verbally engage and she starts to understand a little bit about his background - and relationship to her family on the mainland however, with Mason reluctant to take her to a hospital she is forced to recover on the island.

Statham reluctantly heads for the mainland for medical supplies and is clearly wary of CCTV - so you get a feeling he is hiding from something pretty important.  Meanwhile - back in London's Parliament building, MI6 are outed in a public enquiry for using secret spyware called T.H.E.A, collecting personal data on UK citizens and it's that same software that picks up Mason's retina scan (in the background of a teenagers video call), wrongly identifying him as an Albanian Terrorist.

Within hours, there's a kill squad is at his door, and the island turn into a fatal 'Home Alone' style house with Mason dispatching of those sent to kill him with relative ease.  Now on the run, Statham is forced to fight for his own survival, with a teenager in tow while we get to see behind the scenes at MI6 where the mistaken identity is quickly identified and we slowly work out the reasons why certain elements of MI6 are trying to assassinate one of their own.

No more spoilers from me, but the above is only really the first 30mins and as everything gets going, it's fair to say the following hour is an all out action fest.  Statham is as good as always and other familiar faces include Bill Nighy as the MI6 Chief / Manafort, Harriet Walter as the P.M and Daniel Mays as Booth - Mason's only reliable confidant. 

It's as good as any other movie of this genre out there with well choreographed fight scenes, intense car chases and brutal, bloody fight sequences.  The good / bad guys are identified quite early on and the relationship between Mason and Jessie, although not as paternal as those in A Working Man or Homefront, follows form of Statham being a protector to a young girl and it works well.

It's well acted - well casted and the settings of the Hebrides and Stornoway (shot across Ireland and Rural England locations) offer a bleak and reclusive backdrop compared to the bustling Capital.

Of course it's predictable but you don't watch a Jason Statham movie for the plot line - it's about him - action, great fight scenes and in most cases - a happy ending.

Averaging around two movies a year, his schedule is pretty decent between now and 2028 with Mutiny and the Beekeeper sequel still to come - a reprising of Deckard Shaw in Fast Forever (the 11th and hopefully last offering from this franchise) & a few more yet to be titled movies in production.

Yes they are all repetitive but if it ain't broke, why fix it? And as long as Statham keep churning out these one-man renegade movies - I'll keep watching them!

Fancy watching the Trailer?   Click Below..........