In 1995, schemer Daniel Lugo (Mark Wahlberg) join forces with Christian bodybuilder Paul Doyle , a recently released convict . Sun Gym owner John Mese (Rob Corddry) hires him to increase membership and make the gym more fitness-based. Lugo soon lusts after the earnings and lifestyle achieved by Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub), a sleazy new member he begins to train, who Lugo believes is a crook. Inspired by motivational speaker Jonny Wu (Ken Jeong), Lugo decides to be a "do-er" and carry out a terrible criminal plan . So he enlists the help of fellow bodybuilder Adrian Doorbal (Anthony Mackie) and ex-convict, Christian bodybuilder Paul Doyle (Dwayne Johnson). Their kidnapping and extortion scheme goes terribly wrong since they have muscles for brains and they're left to haphazardly try to hold onto the elusive American dream. Their American Dream Is Bigger Than Yours ! This is a true story ! .
Twisted and surprising film with intrigue , tension , suspense , humor with tongue-in-cheek and lots of violence . The plot is plain and simple, a group of bungling crooks hatches a scheme to coerce a bad guy for his assets by abducting and torturing him, but all of them get caught up in an extortion ring and a kidnapping that goes terribly wrong. The film displays Michael Bay's typical trademarks , such as : actors/characters in his movie aree almost uniformly shot in tight, emphatic close ups, framed under the hairline and above the chin , often uses lightflashes , lightbulbs and cameraflashes to enhance scenes and over-the-top visuals with key events taking place at sunset or dramatic events behind actors doing routine activities. Nice performances from Mark Wahlberg as a Miami bodybuilder who wants to live the American dream who had served time for Medicare fraud , Dwayne Johnson as ex-convict hunk extremely addicted to cocaine and Anthony MacKie who loses vital force due to excessive steroid use. The trio of protagonists giving sympathetic interpretation are well acompanied by a lot of familiar faces , such as : Tony Shalhoub, Ed Harris , Rob Corddry, Bar Paly , Rebel Wilson, Ken Jeong , Michael Rispoli , Tony Plana and Peter Stormare.
It displays thrilling and moving score by Steve Jablonsky , utilizing monotonic but intense musical cues . As well as colorful and brilliant Cinematography by Ben Seresin. The motion picture was well directed by Michael bay conidered to be one of the best commercial filmmakers in Hollywood . In fact , in 1995, Bay was honored by the Directors Guild of America as Commercial Director of the Year. That same year, he also directed his first feature film, Bad Boys (1995), starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, which grossed more than $160 million, worldwide. His follow-up film, The Rock (1996), starring Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage, was also hugely successful, making Bay the director du jour. Following other boxoffice successes such as : Bad Boys II , Armageddon (1998), Pearl Harbor (2001), The Island (2005) , Transformers (2007) and its sequels , among others . Rating : 6.5/10 . Acceptable and decent action/criminal thriller movie.
