Unlike many of his action star peers, Sylvester Stallone has managed to avoid the latter career slump that finds them in bad straight-to-VOD crime thrillers and lousy sequels to familiar IP. While there are a few exceptions (like Escape Plan 2), Stallone has stayed relevant thanks to his franchise roles in Creed, Guardians of the Galaxy, The Expendables, and hit TV series Tulsa King. Stallone does his best to elevate the action flick Armor, but this generic armored truck thriller never gets out of neutral despite solid performances.
Armor boasts the rare opportunity to see Stallone as the villain. He plays Rook, the head of a band of criminals with plans to hijack an armored truck and, what else, steal its contents. It just so happens that day the vehicle is being driven by father/son duo James, played by Speed 2: Cruise Control‘s Jason Patric, and Casey, played by Hellion breakout Josh Wiggins. James is struggling to hide his alcoholism, and his relationship with Casey is somewhat strained at a time when the boy needs him most as he’s about to become a father. It’s an added layer of complexity to the situation when the duo comes under attack by Rook and his crew, eventually finding themselves stuck on a bridge with nowhere to go and only the truck for cover. Good thing it’s armored!
Actually, you might be thinking that Armor sounds a lot like the 2009 heist flick Armored…well, assuming you even remember it. At least in that movie things were speeding along throughout, with the truck being an integral part of the plan. But in Armor, there’s just a lot of sitting around and waiting while Rook haggles with his men, including Dash Mihok as the most violent and impatient of the bunch. Meanwhile, James and Casey are stuck inside the truck sorting out their family problems and trying to stay alive. It’s not a bad scenario but it can only work if there’s a mountain of tension and that is simply lacking.
Director Justin Routt gets good performances from his stars, a talent that not a lot of filmmakers have. There’s some debate about what Routt actually did on set, but that particular scandal has yet to play out fully. Stallone has a bit more to do than the others as Rook is a bad guy with at least some conscience. Although it would’ve been nice to know why he continues to work with such bloodthirsty dickheads. There’s even decent chemistry between Patric, still such an underrated actor, and Wiggins who continues to be a worthy part of every cast he’s in.
For an action movie, there just isn’t enough of it in Armor, with bland shootouts in a stationary environment. It’s criminal to have Stallone and Patric in a movie that’s anything less than an adrenaline rush I imagine that budget limitations prevent this from turning into Speed 3, but come on! Armor isn’t a terrible movie by any means, and Stallone completists may want to see how he does as a baddie, but there’s little reason to remember this one after the credits roll.
Armor opens on November 22nd.
