03/09/2026

LYFE THURSDAY | SEPT 3, 2026

25

MOVIE REVIEW

Ű BY NOEL WONG YAN MING Statham unsurprisingly and almost stereotypically plays a bodyguard on a quest for revenge.

Cole (left) works with Angie to survive onboard a ship crewed by armed human traffickers.

Jason Statham does same old shtick with Mutiny

W HEN I think about Jason Statham, I immediately think about an anecdote that is commonly associated with fellow British thespian Michael Caine. Despite his calibre and pedigree, Caine once acted in the poorly received, box office bomb that was Jaws: The Revenge . Years after, he was asked about his involvement in the film, to which he replied: “I have never seen the film, but by all accounts it was terrible. “However, I have seen the house that it built and it is terrific.” One suspects that this must likely be the case for Statham, who seems completely content to be typecasted as a grizzled soldier or law enforcer with a penchant for revenge. For that indeed describes Statham’s role in his latest flick Mutiny perfectly to a tee and honestly, every other flick he has been in. Sailing the seven seas Meet Cole Reed, played by Statham! He is – spin the wheel – a former outstanding police officer who is now serving as a loyal bodyguard to a shipping magnate. When that magnate is assassinated, Cole goes all out on a roaring rampage of revenge to find out who was responsible and why. This leads him onboard the Artemis, a cargo ship belonging to his deceased employer that turns out to be involved in – spin the wheel again – a human trafficking scheme. With the crew turning out to be a bunch of baddies, Cole has to join forces with Angie (Annabelle Wallis), the only woman and non-guilty crew member onboard the vessel. If you sincerely cannot predict what happens next, it simply means you have not watched enough Statham films to know how these things play out. A short list of what’s good The action, probably, is one of the saving graces of the film, of which there are not many to write of. It is in the film’s favour that it mostly takes place onboard a ship, which means there are many tight corridors and sharp turns that can act as fascinating set pieces.

o One really must admire Brit actor’s dedication to being typecasted repeatedly In one of the more inspired action sequences, Statham takes on several goons in a stairwell, with the gunplay blending deliciously well with the confined environment. Additionally, the action choreographers were likely given leeway with what could be used as weapons and it does produce some interesting some results. One of the more creative kills in the film will likely leave you a little more cautious when handling doors in the future. And for the most part, the camera work during these sorts of scenes is serviceable enough, leaving one unlikely to lose track of what the heck is going on on-screen. If you simply wish to pass the time watching baddies getting their behinds bruised and far worse, the review can likely end right here with no further comment. A longer list of what’s not However, if you are interested in satisfying your palate with good films, you are welcome to continue reading the rest of the review. There is no joy to be taken in criticising films that people worked hard on, except for artificial intelligence-generated films. Thus, the following was written with a harsh but fair approach being taken to Mutiny . The film sits in the category of film that most filmmakers should aspire never to contribute to: The middling film. It is neither good enough to be remembered

for its pure entertainment value nor is it bad enough to be seared into your memories for being a cinematic atrocity to be mocked. Instead, Mutiny sits in the boring middle, with a cliched story, clunky dialogue and uninspired acting. This sort of story has been told a thousand times before, with the attempt at a twist being about as surprising as seeing the Sun rise in the east. The scriptwriters also

0 Cast: Jason Statham, Annabelle Wallis, Roland Moller, Adrian Lester 0 Director: Jean-Francois Richet E-VALUE 6 ACTING 5 PLOT 4

seem content with having important details spelt out via clunky exposition delivered by the actors. And Statham is just... Statham when it comes to his acting. Angry, violent and badass, with very little added dimensionality to his character. The fact that Cole is the most interesting character onscreen does not bode well for the appeal of the other characters, who are indeed mostly there to be cannon fodder anyway. An unfortunate shame Though Statham likely enjoys doing what he does without having the need to push the boundaries of the cinematic arts, while getting a fat paycheque to boot, it is a shame that he is not cast in more roles that make use of his natural sense of humour and Cockney charm. A good film to compare with Mutiny would probably be Beekeeper (2024) or Spy (2015), both of which use his skills at playing the serious action man in a more creative way. Beekeeper has him on a revenge spree, just like Mutiny , but the lines he delivers, actual bee

A poster for Mutiny. – ALL HANDOUT PICS

puns and all, are so absurd coming out of his dead serious character that it winds up being hilarious. And Spy likewise sees him as playing a spy, whose straight man routine serves as a funny contrast to his bumbling partner. Ironic humour is likely the best way to go with Statham and sad to say, Mutiny is more focused on getting people bent over in agony than in laughter.