Customer Reviews

16 Blocks [Blu-ray]

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(55)
3 star:		(43)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Jack Mosley (Bruce Willis) is an aging, rundown, alcoholic cop who, at this stage of his career, finds himself at the bottom of the totem pole. Thus, he gets saddled with the menial errand of escorting smalltime thief Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) 16 blocks from the precinct to the courthouse, where Eddie will testify in a grand jury. But what begins as a routine assignment for Detective Mosley becomes a desperate bid for survival as the bleary eyed, hung-over cop and his charge find themselves under relentless attack by focused, well-armed assailants intent on making sure Eddie doesn't make it to his court appointment.

16 Blocks is a thinking man's action thriller. Even though, on the surface, it looks like a suspense film, a case could be made for it to be considered a character study picture. Amidst all the frenetic bullets and chase sequences, you'll find many moments of casual interaction, as leisurely enacted by Willis, Mos Def and even Morse. Willis and Mos Def, in their mismatched buddy roles, put in some character acting and have several scenes where they just have conversations (some on point, some non sequitur), in between the chases. Mos Def's motormouth character, in particular, spends an inordinate amount of time just riffing about suits and signs and bakeries.

Bruce Willis continues his recent trend (see Hostage) of portraying jaded, burnt-out cops who end up seizing one last shot at redemption. He excels in playing this type of role: tired, world-weary, kicked-around, maybe even a little corrupt, but, ultimately, someone not to be eff'd with and someone who can be depended upon to doggedly do the right thing (Bruce seriously needs to patent this character). Jack Mosley, as played by Willis, is laconic, paunchy, shuffling, stuck on the bottom rung career wise, and has a dire craving for alcohol. But the audience never doubts he'll man up when the chips are down.

I'm a fan of Mos Def, from way back when he was just a hip hop artist. Don't get me wrong, he was and is a great rapper. He flows and rhymes with insight and intelligence. And he's great as the host of HBO's Def Poetry. His natural, off-the-cuff style of acting is making folks sit up and pay attention (check out Brown Sugar, The Italian Job, and Something the Lord Made). With 16 Blocks, he comes out of left field with his jazzy interpretation of Eddie Bunker: verbose, optimistic and a bit quirky. The only negative in his portrayal is the grating fashion in which he channels the nasal voice of comedian Eddie Griffin. Other than that, Mos is solid.

David Morse is great as the main villain. He injects his Det. Frank Nugent, Jack's crooked current supervisor and ex-partner, with equal doses of complexity, cynicism, and immorality. Nugent's been around the block, knows the ropes and could care less about minimizing collateral damage. Yet, a part of Nugent still cares for his former partner Mosley and regrets having to put him down. But, in the end, he's gotta do what a dirty cop's gotta do.

Director Richard Donner gauges the tempo of this movie just right. Not too plodding, but not all out action, either. Oh, the action scenes are plentiful and charged with enough tension but they aren't break-neckedly constant. There is ample breathing room in between the pursuits, a pace which nicely suits Willis's middle-aged, gimpy-legged hero, as he actually gets a chance to take in oxygen, in between exchanging gunfire and platitudes.

The sparse Special Features consist of an alternate ending not seen in theaters, several deleted scenes with wiseacre commentary by Richard Donner and his screenwriter, and a theatrical trailer. A film commentary would've been nice.

16 Blocks is a well-meaning movie that is introspective and thoughtful, yet strives to give the fans their money's worth with its done-by-the-numbers shoot-em-up violence. There is a worthy message here trying to make itself heard, thru the voice of Eddie Bunker, that Pollyanna of a crook. The movie has a top-drawer star at the top of his game, who seems, in fact, to get better as he ages. And it's got Mos Def, who I firmly believe will be heard from for a lot of years to come. Three and a half stars and a solid recommendation.

Veteran director Richard Donner (the first and best "Superman" and "Lethal Weapon") does an excellent job of moving things along in regards to the plot as well as crisply addressing the psychological, moral and social implications of his characters actions in the terrific "16 Blocks." And it helps tremendously to have Bruce Willis and Mos Def in the leading roles.
Willis: gutted, disheveled, disgusted with life and his job as an NYC detective, Jack Mosley... swigging out of a 5th of Canadian Club at 8 AM, limping from an injured leg, looking and acting every bit as a man who has given up on life and waiting for retirement so he can put a bullet through his head. But there is a lot more going on in Jack's head and Willis is very much up to the task of giving him a truthful inner life that both grates on your nerves as well as touches your heart.
Though hampered by a cartoon character voice, the excellent Mos Def gives small time crook Eddie Bunker emotional weight and depth. Eddie's motto? "People can change" ...a mantra that will resonate all through this film.
Donner has tackled some weighty emotional and social issues here: redemption by way of the truth, save a life and that life becomes your responsibility...themes not usually associated with this type of police action picture. In fact"16 Blocks" reminds me very much of Sidney Lumet's sublime "The Verdict" in its juxtaposition of the casualties of basic human nature and its failings and the morality or lack thereof of Justice.

Resting heavily on the shoulders of THE GAUNTLET (Clint Eastwood, 1977), 16 BLOCKS gives us a standard Bruce Willis action film and does so admirably. Not overly so, but a positive nod is deserved.

Jack Mosley (Willis) is an old, alcoholic cop who's always done "the right thing" for his department. And now he's assigned to take a fast-talking thug named Eddie (rapper Mos Def) just 16 blocks for a court appearance. Trouble is, though, Eddie is scheduled to testify against some crooked cops who live and breath right in Jack's backyard. Jack is unaware of this and soon discovers he's got much more than just a simple escort job on his hands. People (cops mainly) are trying to kill Eddie. Jack quickly has to make a decision: protect Eddie and "do the right moral thing," or let his fellow brethren have their way with him and "do the right thing for the department."

Willis plays the aging cop well. He grumbles and drinks and generally hates what he does. The dirty New York offices and streets were shot well and gave an overall sense of the uncleanliness of Jack's life (including his past, which comes up toward the end of the film).

Mos Def plays the irritating convict and his grating voice bugged the crap out of me. He sounded very nasal and whiney but, in contrast, this added a strange upbeat quality to a film that could've gotten too dark.

I also like the fact that Willis isn't trying to play the "young stud" anymore on film. He's getting older and I'm happy to see him in roles befitting his age.

The alternate endings on the DVD are worth watching, too. Personally, I would've gone with an alternate ending rather than the one seen in theaters. But maybe that's just me...

So my birthday was coming and I wanted to hit the movies of all things. Ultraviolet looked like the kind of movie I'd normally spend money on but the reviews were terrible, so after much deliberation with my wife we "settled" on 16 Blocks.

The movie opens with what appears to be a druken, beat down cop played by Bruce Willis, who is assigned to transport a witness to court. He has two hours to get the witness to court, which is 16 blocks away. Sounds easy enough. Until some bad guys try to off the witness. Now an out of shape, old, drunk cop is all that stands between the witness and his killers.

But that is just the surface of it all. . .

We learn about conspiracies and how a witness and a cop are put into some very hairy situations and struggle to find their way out of those situations.

Remnant of the TV show 24 where gutsy, unexpected actions can get one out of a situation or deeper into one.

The acting was good, though Mos Def's voice was just as annoying as fingers on a chalk board. Give the guy some decongestant to clear up that nasally tone, please!

The plot twists were not totally telegraphed and thus appreciated instead of "see I told you they were going to do that" feeling.

The "friendship" aspect of the story was emotionally delivering.

The theme or "message" of the movie was well presented and didn't seem like some cheesy effort on the director/writer's part to make this more than just an suspense/crime movie. On the contrary the message was clearly given and given well, thus accepted easily and with belief.

Overall, this was a very good movie with some depth to it. Worth paying the movie theater price for.

"16 Blocks" is directed by Richard Donner, who helmed the "Lethal Weapon" movies (I know he did the first one for sure) and has, essentially, a story you've seen before. People on the run from something and have to be somewhere by a certain time, everything holds them up and they eventually pull through. While "16 Blocks" runs slightly different then that, it's basically what I said. Turns out though it's one of the most entertaining, funny, and smart action films I've seen this year thus far. In another role as a down-and-out cop, Bruce Willis is spectacular. He catches the tiredness perfectly. Willis plays Jack Mosley, a drunken detective who mopes around and seems like he's ready to retire. As he's leaving the station, his lieutenant tells him he has to pick up a petty criminal and drive him 16 blocks to court, the guy who was supposed to drive him apparently got held up. The guy is Eddie Bunker
(Mos Def, 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"), who is testifying against a bunch of crooked cops. After two hitmen fail to kill Eddie and Jack finds out that the cops are involved, they begin to run. Heading the chase after them is Detective Frank Nugent (the always spectacular David Morse, 'The Green Mile'), an ex-partner of Jack's. As I said, the movie is very entertaining. There's a scene in the film that takes place in a bus that's reminiscent of "Dog Day Afternoon" and at this same scene, the movie momentarily loses it's footing; but quickly regains it. Looking beyond the story, the performances are great too. Mos Def puts on a Mike Tyson voice for some reason, but manages to deliver a charming performance; Willis is playing a character he played in "Sin City" but he's still great; and David Morse is always great. As for the (actual) ending...It's smart, surprising, and redeeming. The alternate ending is good, but it was a good choice that they didn't put it in the movie.

GRADE: A

My boyfriend brought this movie home because a coworker told him it was preety good, there began my skepticism. However within the first 5 minutes I was HOOKED.

The theme of the movie is based upon the good cop bad cop premise, however what sets this movie apart from all the other cop flicks is the raw emotions of the charcters. MOS DEF delivers a superb performance, his role as Eddie gave just the right amount of emotion and innocent humor that put this movie in the 5 star catagory for me. Bruce WIllis of course never dissapoints with his cooler then ever demeanor. Just when you are like oh damn its all over for them there he goes in true Bruce Willis stlye, calm cool and collective.

Buy this movie you wont be dissapointed. You wont be bored at all during the journey through 16 Blocks.

Sometimes I like formulaic cop movies. They allow me to relax, not think too deeply, and not feel any real emotions. That's generally why I chose to watch this 2006 film, 16 Blocks. It's silly. There's a lot of guys shooting at each other. And I could be assured of a pleasant ending. Well, I didn't expect much from this film and I was definitely correct. I was mostly bored but kept watching anyway. I guess that's saying something about me.

Anyway, Bruce Willis is cast as an aging cop with a drinking problem. He's supposed to take a prisoner to testify in front of the grand jury. It's only 16 blocks away and he has two hours to get there. Naturally, this is not as simple as it seems. Mos Def is cast as the prisoner and he's absolutely great in the part. He talks nonstop, tries to make jokes, expresses fear and surprise and every other emotion known to humankind. It's a truly great performance and he shines as at actor. It's just too bad that the plot is so convoluted that, after a while, all I could do was count the minutes till the end of the film.

In addition to Mos Def's acting, another thing I did like about the film was the location and the cinematography. Many of the street scenes are shot in the downtown area near where I live and the film captured the Chinatown area with its narrow crowded streets perfectly. I've walked on these streets many times and during the summer tourist months the crowds are so thick that you can't help being in physical contact with the people walking next to you. Naturally, the chase scenes with this background were rather interesting.

Basically, this film is a time waster and you have to be in the mood for it. I can't really recommend it unless you just want to veg out and be mindless for awhile. But that, I think, was what the filmmakers intended.

Plot: An old out of shape, ugly, and tired cop is ask to take a witness through 16 blocks of traffic, bums, prostitutes, bodegas and nail salons, so he can get to the grand jury and testify in an important case. Sounds easy, except for the bum part. The hard part is that the cop is Bruce Willis and that witness is Mos Def. So you gotta expect that their going to be stop by fans of Die Hard, Sin City, and Def's album The New Danger....

Synopsis: It's always good to see Bruce Willis playing a cop. He doesn't do that as much as I like. Between Hostage, Sin City, Moonlighting, and Die Hard 1-4, you just don't get enough of his tired cop character. No one does it better than Bruce!!! His character Jack Mosley gave you a glimpse of what would have a happen to John McClane if he ate to many donuts and started to gargle alcohol as mouth wash. Or if Hartigan ran away from Nancy at the end of Sin City. All jokes aside, I really enjoyed this film. It didn't break ground in film making or acting, but it was a solid movie by two lead characters. Mos Def's character, Eddie Bunker, has to win an award for the most annoying characters in the history of movies. The voice he chose for the role had me agitated as soon as he uttered a word. Even though his character was annoying, you still felt sympathy for him. Mos Def did a great job and was natural in the whole process.

As for the story of the movie, there was just certain parts in the movie that didn't do it for me. Like when the cops shot the bus filled with innocent people or when Bunker and Mosley escape for the umpteenth time from the cops. You could hear me at my movie theater...I mean my job, saying yeah right. Towards the last 1/3 of the movie I felt it dragged on. Mos Def's yapping got me to the point, that I had to pause the movie and take a deep breath walk around the room. That is the kind of voice people should use to punish prisoners. Besides those minor scratches, this is your basic "chase" movie.


With David Morse doing an excellent job of that chasing. Morse is always in a FBI, CIA, Secret Service, or Police role, and he is the man for the job. Always Solid and he doesn't disappoint.

Final Verdict: Granted, this movie could have been called Die Hard 4, it was good story done with 3 great actors. I even caught a little twinkle at the end of the movie. I feel if a movie can draw you in and make one feel for the characters, then it has done it's job. The story will hopefully follow suit, and this one did. My main gripe is this type of movie has been done before. Not that there is anything wrong with that, it's just that you have to do something to set your film apart from previous films in this genre. Solid Flick nonetheless..

I give it 7.5 out of 10

In 2003, director Richard Donner ("Superman: The Movie" and `Lethal Weapon' series) released his latest directorial effort for Warner Brothers titled "Timeline". Based on a bestseller by renowned author Michael Crichton (author of "Jurassic Park" and "The Lost World"), the movie didn't do much to light audiences fires, and the movie was essentially a flop. After enduring the making of this film, Donner had become disenfranchised with Hollywood for the first time in his incredibly long and successful career. In 2006, Richard Donner returned to deliver audiences a tightly wound thriller, with a very smart story packed full of twists and turns, this thriller was "16 Blocks" starring Bruce Willis and Mos Def.

"16 Blocks" focuses on a down-and-out NYPD detective by the name of Jack Mosley (Bruce Willis), who is assigned the most mundane of tasks to fill up his day. His job is to escort a lowly criminal (Mos Def) from the precinct to the courthouse before the grand jury convenes for the day. Though this may seem a small task, especially since they only have to travel 16 blocks to get from point `A' to point `B', but Jack Mosley is soon discovering that there is more to this assignment and this criminal than meets the eye. Now, both Jack and this criminal are on the run from Jack's fellow police officers, who it just so turns out need to silence this criminal, because he is a key witness in an extortion case against them.

This movie is an incredible ride that grabs you and doesn't let go until the credits roll. While doing an interview to promote this movie, director Richard Donner said that in order for him to want to return to directing movies, it would have to be an incredible script, with assurances that the studio wouldn't interfere as much with the moviemaking process, basically he wanted to be allowed to have fun again. Well, he came back so if nothing else can be said about this film, that should be enough, when an acclaimed director returns from a self-imposed exile from Hollywood to direct a movie, when he really could just retire and live comfortably outside of the public eye. In regards to the excellence that this movie employs, the script as I said was very tightly woven, and fast-paced barely leaving the audience time to catch its breath. The acting throughout the film is of the highest caliber, Bruce Willis is great as the downtrodden detective Jack Mosley, and is virtually unrecognizable if not for his voice. Mos Def turns in a scene stealing performance as the criminal turned star witness, Def's nasal-pitched voice (I don't believe this is how he actually talks in real-life) is so hilarious sounding, while somewhat grinding on the nerves, he is lucky to not annoy the audience entirely, this is achieved through his wit and charm that wins the audience over almost as soon as he's introduced. David Morse also delivers a very solid performance as Jack Mosley's former partner who is leading the renegade cops in their effort to stop Jack from delivering the criminal to the courthouse.

All in all, I really can't complain about this movie at all, if there is one complaint I could make is that the DVD for the movie contained very few special features, other than that there's nothing else negative to say about it, and even that complaint is something aimed not at the movie, but at Warner Brothers for being so chincy with the bonus stuff. So, if you enjoy action-packed thrillers, that have plenty of story and twists that will keep you on the edge of your seat, then this is most definitely the movie for you to see.

"16 Blocks" is rated PG-13 for violence and language.

Bruce Willis plays Jack, a NYPD detective who's had one too many drinks and let one too many bad things just slide on by. At the last minute, he's tasked to take a prisoner to the courthouse. All they have to do is go 16 blocks in 2 hours. What he doesn't know, but probably suspects, is that the police want his prisoner dead. You see, the prisoner is testifying against them.

Do what you always do, the police tell Willis.

But, just this once, Willis decides to try and do the right thing and get his defendant to the courthouse on time. What happens keeps you on the edge of your seat for the next hour or so.

"16 Blocks" is definitely a keeper. The film's fast paced with a lot of heart and interest. Very much worth renting and owning.