The Debt Collector

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source: The Debt Collector

I went into this hoping for a halfway decent B movie and that isn't really what I got. The actors were all okay and we've seen them before in lower budget films. There wasn't much in the way of production values and you could tell that this was done on the cheap. I wasn't expecting a stellar script so to have it be as bad as it was didn't surprise me. I though maybe there'd be some decent fight scenes but it was altogether pretty mild. I did not enjoy the cut-aways during the film. They were too artsy and this was not an art film. The ending was one of the worst endings I have seen in a long, long, time. I feel that I am being generous giving this film 3 stars and I do not recommend this film.

The Debt Collector: 6 out of 10: A Dojo owner (Scott Adkins) gets a side hustle collecting debts to help save his business and his first weekend out with his new partner (Louis Mandylor) is a lot more than he bargained for. The Good: These guys deserved a better movie. The characters are fairly well acted with Louis Mandylor, in particular, a standout. The set-up is fine and would also make a good film (Think of Stallone in Rocky collecting debts but making the entire movie about that.) There are some good fight scenes and the character interaction keeps the plot moving along for about two-thirds of the movie with limited speed bumps. The film does a nice job making one want to see what whacky job or situation the boys are going to get into next. The Bad: This movie wants so badly to be an old style Tarantino joint. It simply doesn't have the script to carry the water. The character interaction (good acting aside) seems forced with Adkins coming across as whiny rather than the snarky I think they were aiming for. These are cartoon characters in a cartoon world playing it very straight. The movie isn't very realistic. (Protip: Shootouts and fist fights in quiet upscale suburban neighborhoods get police attention very very quickly. I mean these people call the cops if someone is mowing the wrong lawn.) While the movie has a nice pace with colorful characters for the first two thirds it hits a roadblock when it decides to get serious. All of a sudden kids are dying of cancer and somebody has to kneecap Jesus. It is an unfortunate tonal shift where a movie that was about as realistic as Death Watch 3 decides it was going to be End of Watch. The Ugly: What is it with the cows? If you are hoping it isn't an over the top, on the nose allegory prepare to be very disappointed. In Conclusion: There is a fun romp buried under all the arty pretension and wannabe Tarantino riffs. Last act tonal shifts aside I found it enjoyable if eventually disappointing.

French (Scott Adkins) has some financial difficulties that need immediate attention. In desperation he agrees to work for Tommy (Vladimir Kulich) collecting debts. He is teamed up with Sue (Louis Mandylor, although I would have liked Woody Harrelson) to lean on people and collect debts. The arrangement reminded me of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom where Sue is Marlin Perkins and French is Jim Fowler wrestling the alligator. It was an action film with many whimsical moments. Eventually they need to do a reluctant job for Tony Todd described as "a demon" most likely a reference to another film. Enjoyable for what it was. Guide: F-word, sex, nudity.

The film began as a kung-foo style motion picture with a hard-working owner of a gym standing up to some thugs who wanted to take over his business. But the film took a U-turn when the main character named French hires himself out as the debt collector in the employ of an underworld boss. The "collections" that took place involved an assortment of gamblers who were in arrears in their debts. In each instance, there were fight sequences that were beyond the pale in the violence. The fight scenes were not even choreographed skillfully and repeated same moves and kicks in each fight. There was the potential to develop the relationship between the two debt collectors, but both of their characters were not very interesting. Another disgusting choice on the part of the filmmakers was to intersperse scenes from a slaughterhouse. Overall, "The Debt Collector" was an unpleasant and amateur work of filmmaking. The portrayal of the women's roles in the film was especially distasteful. One star.