Too many fans seem to be blown away

That was an excellent one.

A Brilliant Conflict

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

This film tells the story of a man who cannot feel any pain due to a generic condition. He becomes a successful crime gangster as a result. One day, he is sent to kill four of his own mates, and everything breaks loose."The Midnight Man" is an action film with a twist! It is such an obvious choice for an action film in retrospect, and the idea really works. Why I haven't seen films like this, I do not know. The main guy, Grady, is real tough but he is also sensitive. His relationship with Zan is convincing too. They are both very good, and make the film more enjoyable and convincing. It has a lot of fights and action, but it doesn't appear senselessly violent. I enjoyed watching it.

I was truly surprised by this one, something that doesn't happen very often. While definitely a movie not made on an extreme budget it does offer plenty of action, entertainment, witty dialogue and some decent performances. That's always nice to see.Will Kemp stars as Grady, a hit-man with a twist. As we learn in the first segment of the movie he has a rare condition that results in his having no sensation of pain. While this could be dangerous for most people he uses it to his advantage taking beatings and torture from his foes without consequence. While it confounds them it allows him the time to break free and complete any and all killings he was set out to do.Grady's main employer is Ezekiel (Brent Spiner) who sets him on the trail of several men, all of whom have joined together to take him down and possibly Grady as well. He gives him a cell phone, sends him off to the first target and tells him he'll give him the next name as he completes each task.Grady is drugged after taking out his first target by someone who snuck into the apartment before he could leave. That person not only left him unconscious but injected him with a serum that takes away his advantage leaving him able to feel things for the first time, including but not limited to pain. When he wakes he kidnaps an ambulance driver named Zan (Brinna Kelly) to help him deal with some wounds and assist him as the night moves forward. Of course the whole Stockholm syndrome comes into play here as Zan eventually begins to have feelings for Grady.With each target Grady and Zan not only have to worry about completing his mission but in finding out who was there to target him as well at the first hit. In the end just who is doing what and why makes for a satisfying and completely off guard solution to the mystery.What makes the movie work is the well scripted writing, giving Grady a wise cracking disposition that has him delivering quips while working at the job of killing people. Kemp does a wonderful job of pulling these off with ease. Not only that the end of the film also results in something so unexpected that it catches you by surprise, something that doesn't happen that often these days. Throw in some short near cameo sequences by action vets like William Forsythe and Vinnie Jones as well as one of the few non-makeup related roles by Doug Jones (who does a fantastic job here) and you have a movie that is a fun surprise to watch.After first watching I wasn't sure if this was one I'd add keep for my collection or not. But the more I thought about it the more I kept holding on to it. In the end I think it is one I may go back to from time to time, I had enough fun for that to happen. If nothing else this is one worth watching. Let's hope all involved move forward in the direction this film is pointing.

In a world where action movies become more visceral, more demanding in their production and cinematography, "The Midnight Man" employs a sluggishly poor combat. Nevertheless, it also offers a few funny exchanges with solid script and presentable acting performance. The end product is a somewhat enjoyably one night stand with glaring flaws which are forgivable depending on your expectation.Grady (Will Kemp) is a fixer for a mob boss with unique ability to not feel pain. In one bad night, he must eliminate four targets that may have more connection than he thinks. There's a shade of Ryan Reynolds here, as Will Kemp dons a similar witty agent while running from one bizarre situation to the next. He gets the jester part right, although there's some shoddy moments when trying to emulate a hardened criminal.Brinna Kelly as Zan, the unlucky paramedic who got caught in the crossfire, is a fairly decent love interest and weird partner. Usually, this kind of Jason Statham's Transporter suave romance doesn't pay off, but the acting and chemistry makes it work more often than not. The supporting cast like Doug Jones and William Forsythe also deliver on the outlandishly named and portrayed characters.The problem, and it's a rather significant one, comes when it tries to do action sequences. It's utterly horrible, bordering on Bollywood level. This makes the sturdy, flamboyant or charismatic characters into feeble men trying to deliver a punch and fail. At a couple of points it becomes ridiculous, which perhaps might be serendipitous or even intentional, but it betrays the serious thriller tone it just builds for five minutes.Messy and sketchy, but hilariously entertaining at times. it's a sloppy trudge through a peculiar night elevated by its clever and humorous script.

I was expecting a weak thriller also-ran, but instead I got a very entertaining, unusual drama. A lot of movies are challenged by how to inform the viewer about what's going on, but the addition of a hostage is well engineered and gives us our everyman for exposition. She also provides a fantastic foil for a somewhat complex idea and has great chemistry with the protagonist. A very unusual concept sets the movie apart but doesn't mire us down in overlong explanations or monologues. In fact many ideas that might have been over-dramatic in other movies are efficiently dispatched with a few lines. For example, establishing that our hostage has a young daughter (and thus a vulnerability) is handled in about three lines of dialog. I say this as a compliment, as the screenwriter has expertly relied on the audience to pick up on things instead of spelling out every single detail. This gives the dialog (and the movie) a very comfortable, natural feel. The biggest twist of all was learning who wrote and produced the movie - a fantastic first outing for a pretty talented actress. I hope we see a lot more from her in the future.