REVIEW: The Rock saves 'Skyscraper' from falling to its death - East Idaho News
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REVIEW: The Rock saves ‘Skyscraper’ from falling to its death

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For years, Hollywood has been churning out knock-offs of the 1988 hit “Die Hard.” For example, “Speed” was “Die Hard” on a bus. “White House Down” was “Die Hard” at the White House. “Con Air” was “Die Hard” on an airplane.

And “Skyscraper” is “Die Hard” in a … well, “Skyscraper” is basically a “Die Hard” rerun with different window dressing.

“Skyscraper” stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as Will Sawyer, an ex-FBI agent who left the agency after a job goes bad. Now, Sawyer’s hired to give a security assessment of The Pearl, the newly-minted tallest skyscraper in the world. When a bunch of thugs show up and trap his wife and kids, framing him in the process, Sawyer flies into action to save his loved ones and clear his name.

Though it may have a few new wrinkles, “Skyscraper” borrows so liberally from “Die Hard,” the producers should be paying royalties. Let’s see … Our protagonist dangling from the side of a high-rise? CHECK! European bag guys perpetrating crimes against an Asian businessman? CHECK! A wince-inducing scene where our protagonist extracts sharp foreign objects from his body? A gag involving a cleverly-concealed weapon? CHECK and CHECK!!

“Skyscraper” is so close to being a “Die Hard” remake, it’s fair to wonder if the filmmakers just followed Johnson around with a camera while he was doing some John McClane cosplay. This movie is so derivative, you may rightfully wonder why it’s even worth seeing.

The answer is simple. Dwayne Johnson.

Johnson is not great at emoting, and he’s not very versatile. But the man is incredibly charismatic, enough to make almost anything he’s in worth watching once. In “Skyscraper,” Johnson keeps it pretty simple, playing most scenes with steely grit and determination. But his likability and charisma show through just enough to get you to root for him. The rest of the cast doesn’t really stand out, but when you have Johnson, you don’t need them to.

Along with Johnson, the film gives us a couple of really intense involving heights. Seriously, these scenes are shot from from angles that would make Spider-Man afraid of heights. The scene involving the crane is tense enough to warrant seeing the movie. And, thankfully, they didn’t show us the best bits in the trailers.

Director Rawson Marshall Thurber did a good job of putting together scenes that greatly play up the threat of Sawyer plummeting to his death. He also makes a good choice in keeping the tone relatively light. “Skyscraper” isn’t as funny or witty as “Die Hard,” but it’s also not glum or depressing. And Thurber does a good job of maximizing the way Johnson (or maybe Johnson’s stunt double) throws himself around in the fight scenes. He makes us feel it every time Sawyer lands a punch or tackles a bad guy.

“Skyscraper” is extremely derivative of better movies, predictable as the sunrise and doesn’t get much interesting stuff from the supporting cast. But it’s got Johnson and a couple really cool, death-defying stunt scenes. Oh, and it may open your mind to applications of duct tape you may not have considered before. All in all, it’s got enough good stuff in it to be enjoyable.

3 Indy Fedoras out of 5

MPAA Rating: PG-13

Thanks to Fat Cats in Rexburg for providing screenings for movie reviews on EastIdahoNews.com.

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