Protraph
Lack of good storyline.
Dynamixor
The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.
GarnettTeenage
The film was still a fun one that will make you laugh and have you leaving the theater feeling like you just stole something valuable and got away with it.
Lidia Draper
Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
winner55
Beyond an absolutely brilliant performance by Skeet Ulrich as a man trained to be a hit-man for a criminal corporation, there's not much to recommend this film. It's not as terrible as some reviewers remarked - beneath the flashy visuals lies a rather old-fashioned suspense thriller. Unfortunately, the producers were clearly shopping for another "Bourne Identity", and the director, probably a meth-addict, had watched too many John Woo films. I mention this because while I watched the bicycle chase stunts - all too clearly created by the editor rather than the stunt crew - I thought of Jackie Chan's marvelous bike chase in "Project A" and thought to myself, 'gee, that's what this movie needs - Jackie Chan, not John Woo'. But John Woo is the influence here, and since Woo is an arch-stylist, to imitate him you have to have a real schmaltzy but original plot going on beneath the style; and while this film has the schmaltz, it has no originality to speak of. There are glaring references to Hitchcock and Stanley Donen, Samuel Fuller's "Dead Pigeon on Beethoven Street" and an obscure thriller based on an Alistair MacLean novel, "Puppet on a Chain" - glaring because the originals were so much better and certainly don't need this sort of 'tribute'.I won't say this is a bad thriller; some will find it entertaining enough. But it pretends to be so much more - what a disappointment.
bryant52
Accomplishing what I had thought impossible, this film moves from intriguing/thriller-worthy premise to absolute schlock within 5 minutes of the opening credits. No story. No characters. No acting. Dubious cinematography (I guess it's just a Blue, Blue World). All this matched by an ending which establishes a new standard for 'lousy'. Given that it was a free rental....I want my money back.
lynxpoint2001
I rented this film at the same time I rented Trapped and got an entirely opposite reaction from one to the other even though both were action thrillers.Trapped was a mess. Big names, big budget for explosions and chases. Soul Assassin appears to have been made on a comparative shoe string budget (bicycle chases in Amsterdam?). Anyway, it has style, no really big names, an attitude (Hi Tech look, feel, sound track) and a lot of fun. Check your preconceptions at the door and enjoy the ride.
sralnosral2000
I watched this film with some friends and most of them felt like I did that the hyper-kinetic pace and style was fun and kind of creative. In the middle of all the action and style was a good story and decent acting. That is very rare in a film of this genre. Derek De Lint was really good.Watch this one. It really gives you a lot of bang for your buck.