The movie was a waste of time and i am really disappointed. I could describe this movie as a "wanna be movie"...the director wants to be Guy Ritchie but he is not...50 cent wants to be an actor but he is not, Ryan Phillipe wants to be a bad guy but he is not, because of his baby face...when you see Bruce Willis on the cover you expect him to be actually present in the movie but he is not...everything in this project is poor...i really gave it a chance and watched all 90 min but it was a waste of time. The act was too slow, it tried to build up characters but it failed...many things were simply not there as script and acting. I had hard time understanding the words of 50 cent, Ryan Phillipe was OK but this character was simply not for him...he matches other roles much better...Bruce Willis was OK too but he had a very small and insignificant role.
109 Reviews
Oh dear...
jason-63812 September 2011
OK, so I didn't have particularly high expectations for this, and I'm not going to bother emphasising Curtis Jackson's flat performance, since it's likely you've seen how "expressive" this guy is in everything else he's ever done, as it is, if I know he's in a movie, I already have a pretty good clue that he won't be the highlight.
So what else have we got? Ryan Phillippe, and Bruce Willis... OK, Bruce pulls out a reasonable performance, but he really doesn't have much to work with, due to a muddled, thin script.
So of course the same difficulties apply to Ryan Phillippe, however, since he has a much larger part in this it's difficult to see that his performance is OK, and really he's let down by the poor script.
Well, look, Curtis Jackson, I'm not sure why this guy wants to be an actor, for the moment he'll have to keep wanting, because he hasn't pulled anything out the sack with this one. It's not that his performance is dreadful, it's just ... empty, and he really isn't bringing any soul to his character, and I've got to say, I really hope he gets better than this, because I know he's going to keep trying.
Anyway, if you watch this, brush the sick off yourself and go watch Way of the Gun so you can forgive Ryan Phillippe.
In summary even casting a lead that could act probably wouldn't have save this shoddy script, but there's a few good moments that will entertain.
So what else have we got? Ryan Phillippe, and Bruce Willis... OK, Bruce pulls out a reasonable performance, but he really doesn't have much to work with, due to a muddled, thin script.
So of course the same difficulties apply to Ryan Phillippe, however, since he has a much larger part in this it's difficult to see that his performance is OK, and really he's let down by the poor script.
Well, look, Curtis Jackson, I'm not sure why this guy wants to be an actor, for the moment he'll have to keep wanting, because he hasn't pulled anything out the sack with this one. It's not that his performance is dreadful, it's just ... empty, and he really isn't bringing any soul to his character, and I've got to say, I really hope he gets better than this, because I know he's going to keep trying.
Anyway, if you watch this, brush the sick off yourself and go watch Way of the Gun so you can forgive Ryan Phillippe.
In summary even casting a lead that could act probably wouldn't have save this shoddy script, but there's a few good moments that will entertain.
Another Weak Rip-off of Guy Ritchie's Style
claudio_carvalho28 January 2012
In Detroit, Sonny (50 Cent), Vincent Long (Ryan Phillippe) and Dave Hall (Brett Granstaff) are friends since high-school. They reunite to successfully heist 5 million dollars in diamonds in a daring operation. However, Sonny and Dave are betrayed by Vincent that shots them and steel the diamonds.
Sonny miraculously saves and seeks revenge against Vincent. Meanwhile the owner of the diamonds sends a hit-man to find Sonny and Vincent while the powerful mobster Biggs (Bruce Willis) forces Sonny to steal 2 million dollars from a Russian mafia. Sonny seeks out Vincent not only to revenge, but also to get rid off Biggs and his gangsters.
"Setup" is a disappointing film with a poor screenplay. Bruce Willis, Ryan Phillippe and James Remar have minor participations and the character of 50 Cent is not well developed with an ambiguous personality. The director Mike Gunther makes another weak rip-off of Guy Ritchie's style and this comedy-action movie does not work. My vote is four.
Title (Brazil): "Sem Lei" ("Without Law")
Sonny miraculously saves and seeks revenge against Vincent. Meanwhile the owner of the diamonds sends a hit-man to find Sonny and Vincent while the powerful mobster Biggs (Bruce Willis) forces Sonny to steal 2 million dollars from a Russian mafia. Sonny seeks out Vincent not only to revenge, but also to get rid off Biggs and his gangsters.
"Setup" is a disappointing film with a poor screenplay. Bruce Willis, Ryan Phillippe and James Remar have minor participations and the character of 50 Cent is not well developed with an ambiguous personality. The director Mike Gunther makes another weak rip-off of Guy Ritchie's style and this comedy-action movie does not work. My vote is four.
Title (Brazil): "Sem Lei" ("Without Law")
Was this written by a 16 year old?
davidfurlotte11 September 2011
Warning: Spoilers
I've seen movies that have plot holes big enough to drive trucks through, some big enough to drive aircraft carriers through, but this has got to be the first movie that I've seen that an entire planet could get through the myriad of plot holes.
*****Oh Yes there be SPOILERS*****
Plot Hole 1 So, let me understand this correctly, the ENTIRE Detroit Police Department has gone on vacation for this movie.
We start out with 3 guys pulling over a car in downtown Detroit in the middle of the morning by jumping out of their vehicle and just rattling off a whole bunch of rounds with automatic weapons. LITERALLY hundreds, perhaps thousands of bystanders, and not ONE of them thinks to call 911? Oh, and of course there isn't a police car within 1 or 2 miles of this location?
Plot Hole 2 The boys speed away in a vehicle that is completely discreet, practically invisible... a brand new Chrysler White Van with a logo on it, to some location down near the river to wait for their contact to show up. Now of course, one of the 3 bad guys turns on his two friends that he grew up with and shoots them, leaving one of them alive of course, otherwise the movie would end there...wouldn't that have been NICE?
Then we have plot holes that I cannot understand because they're so strange.
The Shooter has a sister that NEITHER one of his BEST BOYHOOD friends know about and she just happens to be the DRIVER for the guy they robbed.
Oh, the guy that got killed and was OBVIOUSLY one of the three guys that pulled off the robbery just gets collected by ???? and has a nice funeral instead of perhaps a cop or two determining who he was and looking for his friends, etc. (Maybe in the cutbacks in Detroit there's no homicide department or violent crimes department or robbery department) Then we have a hit-man (we don't ever learn who he works for) and we have Bruce Willis entering as the Mob Boss who magically finds the guy who got shot (50 cent) and wants to hire him to do a job for him which has NOTHING to do with the earlier things.
I watched this because I LIKE Bruce Willis, he's a good actor and does a lot of really good movies, but really Bruce, did they offer you THAT much money you couldn't walk away from this one?
You cannot watch this movie without going WTF at least a dozen times. I've reviewed some movies that I've advised you to just enjoy and go along for the ride because of the great action sequences, THIS is NOT going to be one of them. PLEASE give this a pass and let it end up in the BARGAIN BIN of some obscure convenience store as soon as possible.
*****Oh Yes there be SPOILERS*****
Plot Hole 1 So, let me understand this correctly, the ENTIRE Detroit Police Department has gone on vacation for this movie.
We start out with 3 guys pulling over a car in downtown Detroit in the middle of the morning by jumping out of their vehicle and just rattling off a whole bunch of rounds with automatic weapons. LITERALLY hundreds, perhaps thousands of bystanders, and not ONE of them thinks to call 911? Oh, and of course there isn't a police car within 1 or 2 miles of this location?
Plot Hole 2 The boys speed away in a vehicle that is completely discreet, practically invisible... a brand new Chrysler White Van with a logo on it, to some location down near the river to wait for their contact to show up. Now of course, one of the 3 bad guys turns on his two friends that he grew up with and shoots them, leaving one of them alive of course, otherwise the movie would end there...wouldn't that have been NICE?
Then we have plot holes that I cannot understand because they're so strange.
The Shooter has a sister that NEITHER one of his BEST BOYHOOD friends know about and she just happens to be the DRIVER for the guy they robbed.
Oh, the guy that got killed and was OBVIOUSLY one of the three guys that pulled off the robbery just gets collected by ???? and has a nice funeral instead of perhaps a cop or two determining who he was and looking for his friends, etc. (Maybe in the cutbacks in Detroit there's no homicide department or violent crimes department or robbery department) Then we have a hit-man (we don't ever learn who he works for) and we have Bruce Willis entering as the Mob Boss who magically finds the guy who got shot (50 cent) and wants to hire him to do a job for him which has NOTHING to do with the earlier things.
I watched this because I LIKE Bruce Willis, he's a good actor and does a lot of really good movies, but really Bruce, did they offer you THAT much money you couldn't walk away from this one?
You cannot watch this movie without going WTF at least a dozen times. I've reviewed some movies that I've advised you to just enjoy and go along for the ride because of the great action sequences, THIS is NOT going to be one of them. PLEASE give this a pass and let it end up in the BARGAIN BIN of some obscure convenience store as soon as possible.
Poor, poor poor.
wbafanclub129 September 2011
Well this type of genre, i.e action, crime, heist is right up my street. Add Bruce Willis to the frame and you would think that I was onto a winner. Unfortunately this was not the case. I found the film to be poorly directed, the acting wooden and the storyline predictable if slightly erratic. After reading the synopsis I kind of thought I would be in for a decent hour and a half. I found myself dropping off 55 minutes into the film which for an action film is pretty poor. Of course, I say action but the truth is there was very little action in it. Add to it a strange religious undertone which I suppose is to signify the lead role is looking for redemption and you get a complete mismatch/ conflict of interests. I give it a generous four out of ten but take into consideration this is about the lowest I have ever scored a film.
Plain awful
arriva11 September 2011
Having noticed that this movie contains two big names such as Bruce Willis and Ryan Phillippe, you may think that this is a worthy film. No, you are entirely wrong.
I've never seen such an amateurish film with such high-profile actors. It seems like out of $22 million spent on this flick, $20 million have been spent on actors' fees, and the remaining trifling sum of money was spent on production.
This film lacks everything - what you get is very bad acting, an incoherent unrealistic plot. Basically, you cannot help but wonder why everything happens the way it's portrayed because most of the scenes in the movie make no sense at all.
I've never seen such an amateurish film with such high-profile actors. It seems like out of $22 million spent on this flick, $20 million have been spent on actors' fees, and the remaining trifling sum of money was spent on production.
This film lacks everything - what you get is very bad acting, an incoherent unrealistic plot. Basically, you cannot help but wonder why everything happens the way it's portrayed because most of the scenes in the movie make no sense at all.
Hollywood rubbish
LOL101LOL11 September 2011
Seeing it had a good cast I thought this could be a good film, wrong! It's just a over hyped B grader by using a few big name actors, sure Ryan Phillippe is in it here and there but Bruce Willis is in it only for the name, as he is in this film for around 20 minutes, Bruce is only in it to prop up this film. 50 cents is just not credible as an actor, and Bruce and Ryan can't help him raise the bar past the level of B grade.
The story is nothing new, it's predictable and plain boring, and that music score! they are really trying to make this sound like a serious crime drama, but they failed, it just proves again it takes more then well know actors to make a good film.
Would I recommend this film? yeah sure if I did not like you! give it a miss, walk your dog instead, wash your car, ring your mum! as this film is not worth wasting your time on.
Solid 1 out of 10, it would have been a zero but I did love that GTO, the main high light of the film.
The story is nothing new, it's predictable and plain boring, and that music score! they are really trying to make this sound like a serious crime drama, but they failed, it just proves again it takes more then well know actors to make a good film.
Would I recommend this film? yeah sure if I did not like you! give it a miss, walk your dog instead, wash your car, ring your mum! as this film is not worth wasting your time on.
Solid 1 out of 10, it would have been a zero but I did love that GTO, the main high light of the film.
Worst movie ever
maxeldesign10 September 2011
I endured watching this film just so i can get a good laugh. It has no story, everything happens in a random way, the plot is almost inexistent.
The thing that is hard to believe is that Bruce Willis is in this movie. It has a 5 minute role in total so you can imagine that they used his image just to make this movie interesting, but after 15 minutes of watching you will realize that its a very poor movie.
If you are in the mood of laughing and making fun and you are with friends, i recommend it, there is a lot to mock in the movie.
I never wrote a review before, but this movie made me do this.
The thing that is hard to believe is that Bruce Willis is in this movie. It has a 5 minute role in total so you can imagine that they used his image just to make this movie interesting, but after 15 minutes of watching you will realize that its a very poor movie.
If you are in the mood of laughing and making fun and you are with friends, i recommend it, there is a lot to mock in the movie.
I never wrote a review before, but this movie made me do this.
Indescribable....
CharlieHound10 September 2011
Desperately bad acting, paralleled only by the plot (or lack thereof).
The movie was totally disjointed, and was completely devoid of anything that would grab the attention of any audience with an IQ greater the date of the month on which they were unfortunate enough to be subjected to this, for want of a better or more appropriate phrase, B-Movie.
I rarely comment on movies, but this is possibly the worst movie I've ever had the misfortune of sharing the same room as, far less, watching.
As much as I'd like to blame the writer, it's impossible to lay the blame at the door of any single person. As far as I can see, everyone involved in the making of this movie is equally to blame, and as a foot-note, it's sad to see that Bruce Willis never matured into a decent actor...
The movie was totally disjointed, and was completely devoid of anything that would grab the attention of any audience with an IQ greater the date of the month on which they were unfortunate enough to be subjected to this, for want of a better or more appropriate phrase, B-Movie.
I rarely comment on movies, but this is possibly the worst movie I've ever had the misfortune of sharing the same room as, far less, watching.
As much as I'd like to blame the writer, it's impossible to lay the blame at the door of any single person. As far as I can see, everyone involved in the making of this movie is equally to blame, and as a foot-note, it's sad to see that Bruce Willis never matured into a decent actor...
Decent script, poor acting, predictable
crabtre313 September 2011
The first scene of the movie you knew it was going to be bad. You can easily get lost in the dialog. Characters walking in and out of the scenes is very predictable. You can almost guess what is going to happen at every turn and what they are going to say. Bruce Willis acted normal in this one, good. Curtis Jackson played another role of the gangster who has the good heart, and Ryan Phillippe played the backstabber. Jackson did a good job but when he tries to show emotion it's just poor acting. Phillippe should pick some roles that fit him better, not ones where he has to be the bad guy, just not believable. Overall this movie gets a 5 only because the script was decent. The acting was too quick and the conversations weren't too in-depth. Every scene with Willis in it slowed down to film speed, where you could actually pay attention. The emotional parts in the movie lasted 5 seconds at a time and the action parts lasted even shorter. Mike Gunther, if your reading, you have way more talent than this, please try again for us all.
bad script, worse acting
Filmbrewer14 September 2011
The screenplay feels like a teenager wrote it, who learned to cuss by his wangster older brother, and now uses his overly foul language in the most inappropriate situations.
On top of the horrific acting and terrible dialogue, the characters seem to feel the need to describe what they're doing as their doing it. And hey 50-cent, it's called pronunciation, try it!
The plot can't decide what type of action movie it wants to be. It feels like the writers just strung a series of their favorite movie scenes from all their favorite movies randomly together. There is no action leading to the next action, just 50 running around sticking a gun in everyone's face and explaining the plot over and over again.
Question: WHY ARE ALL THE CHARACTERS EXPLAINING TO ME WHAT I'M WATCH?! Answer: it's a dumbed-down movie for those people who are always asking questions during a movie.
Oh and the music sucks, sounds like stock music or the temp soundtrack was never changed.
On top of the horrific acting and terrible dialogue, the characters seem to feel the need to describe what they're doing as their doing it. And hey 50-cent, it's called pronunciation, try it!
The plot can't decide what type of action movie it wants to be. It feels like the writers just strung a series of their favorite movie scenes from all their favorite movies randomly together. There is no action leading to the next action, just 50 running around sticking a gun in everyone's face and explaining the plot over and over again.
Question: WHY ARE ALL THE CHARACTERS EXPLAINING TO ME WHAT I'M WATCH?! Answer: it's a dumbed-down movie for those people who are always asking questions during a movie.
Oh and the music sucks, sounds like stock music or the temp soundtrack was never changed.
Don't Believe These Other Guys...
Huump28 September 2011
Warning: Spoilers
****Spoiler Alert****Read This AFTER Watching The Movie****
Okay... The movie overall was GOOD. Yes, the acting could have been better, and yes, the script could have been better, but if you stop CRITIQUING everything and just watch the movie, I'm sure you'll be satisfied by the end. A few things didn't make sense (baseball in the winter, the cops not investigating the death of the third friend, the child-hood friends not knowing that their shooter had a sister, etc)I admit, but the sequence of events ARE believable. I can believe a muscle man for the mob would shoot himself while playing with guns THAT AREN'T HIS, thinking he's such an "expert" on weapons. I can believe a hit man found the protagonist in two days...HE'S A FREAKING HIT MAN! THAT'S HIS JOB AND HE'S GOOD AT IT!! I can believe the mob boss found his thief so soon...HE'S A MOB BOSS!! HE KNOWS EVERYTHING (criminal & high-paying) THAT TAKES PLACE IN HIS TOWN OR CUTS INTO HIS MONEY!!
As for there being a religious under-tone... I don't think so. It can't be an "undertone" considering that he's robbing people the whole movie, but I believe it has a subliminal message---Pray. Sonny survived situations that most wouldn't have, because he prays. He never kills anyone in the film, because he (although doubtful at times) believes in the word. I think THAT'S what the religious pieces of the film wanted you to see. NO, there wasn't much action in the film, but the movie manages to keep your attention with other things, such as the characters themselves, the mystery of whats next and how everything ties together, and things of that nature. 50 Cent normally plays a tough guy or the boss type, but in this film he's just an average Joe who happens to know how to handle himself. He's not a "bad ass" or a "shooter", but he (having grown up in Detroit and being a thief) knows how to protect himself as well as strike fear in others. He's trying something new, so I don't expect him to be GREAT at it, but he DID make the character believable.
Overall, I think the movie is pretty good and a good past-time. Good actors, a decent storyline, nice visuals, and a righteous ending. I'd definitely watch it again. After all, it's definitely not the worst action/crime film I've seen. I mean, hell, THE TOWN was over-rated, dry, and slow as hell!...the robbery scenes were the only good ones, and it aired in theaters! Just because a movie has a lower budget doesn't mean it's worse, and just because a movie has a bunch of hype doesn't mean it's great (look at Green Lantern...horrible).
Have an open mind when watching movies...enjoy them for what they are and quit looking for what's "wrong" with them.
---------------Huump
Okay... The movie overall was GOOD. Yes, the acting could have been better, and yes, the script could have been better, but if you stop CRITIQUING everything and just watch the movie, I'm sure you'll be satisfied by the end. A few things didn't make sense (baseball in the winter, the cops not investigating the death of the third friend, the child-hood friends not knowing that their shooter had a sister, etc)I admit, but the sequence of events ARE believable. I can believe a muscle man for the mob would shoot himself while playing with guns THAT AREN'T HIS, thinking he's such an "expert" on weapons. I can believe a hit man found the protagonist in two days...HE'S A FREAKING HIT MAN! THAT'S HIS JOB AND HE'S GOOD AT IT!! I can believe the mob boss found his thief so soon...HE'S A MOB BOSS!! HE KNOWS EVERYTHING (criminal & high-paying) THAT TAKES PLACE IN HIS TOWN OR CUTS INTO HIS MONEY!!
As for there being a religious under-tone... I don't think so. It can't be an "undertone" considering that he's robbing people the whole movie, but I believe it has a subliminal message---Pray. Sonny survived situations that most wouldn't have, because he prays. He never kills anyone in the film, because he (although doubtful at times) believes in the word. I think THAT'S what the religious pieces of the film wanted you to see. NO, there wasn't much action in the film, but the movie manages to keep your attention with other things, such as the characters themselves, the mystery of whats next and how everything ties together, and things of that nature. 50 Cent normally plays a tough guy or the boss type, but in this film he's just an average Joe who happens to know how to handle himself. He's not a "bad ass" or a "shooter", but he (having grown up in Detroit and being a thief) knows how to protect himself as well as strike fear in others. He's trying something new, so I don't expect him to be GREAT at it, but he DID make the character believable.
Overall, I think the movie is pretty good and a good past-time. Good actors, a decent storyline, nice visuals, and a righteous ending. I'd definitely watch it again. After all, it's definitely not the worst action/crime film I've seen. I mean, hell, THE TOWN was over-rated, dry, and slow as hell!...the robbery scenes were the only good ones, and it aired in theaters! Just because a movie has a lower budget doesn't mean it's worse, and just because a movie has a bunch of hype doesn't mean it's great (look at Green Lantern...horrible).
Have an open mind when watching movies...enjoy them for what they are and quit looking for what's "wrong" with them.
---------------Huump
Huge cast, small plot
dgg32198211 September 2011
One thing I haven't understood, why a movie can pull up a cast like the trio in the post but can not have a decent story. An old school big score goes wrong and revenge isn't that much of a plot. The ending is just so-so, no surprise, no tears and no laughters. A few monologues from 50 cent are neither funny nor enlightening. Every character has a short and non-impressive appearance before the camera and none of them is quite tangible, all cameo without the time needed to develop the character, the only exception perhaps is Bruce Willis.
And perhaps, 50 cent is still not yet a full-fledged movie star although he tried it really hard recently. His expression is still quite poor, especially when he stood beside Bruce Willis. No emotion on his face, just like a plain sheet of paper.
Man, Bruce is still good like always, managed to add something funny in this otherwise plain movie, but neither he can rescue the movie.
And perhaps, 50 cent is still not yet a full-fledged movie star although he tried it really hard recently. His expression is still quite poor, especially when he stood beside Bruce Willis. No emotion on his face, just like a plain sheet of paper.
Man, Bruce is still good like always, managed to add something funny in this otherwise plain movie, but neither he can rescue the movie.
Set Up & Let Down
bilgerat9923 September 2011
A modern "Heist" caper, starring Bruce Willis?
Should be good, uh-huh...
I'm legally deaf and far-sighted and I have an IQ that would probably qualify me to be marked down 30% at your local 99-cent store. I only completed two years of high school and when people start talking about things like "character arcs", "long shots", "cutaway", "out-takes", "dailies", etc., regarding the art of film-making, I really have no idea as to what they're talking about.
But even I could make a better movie than this one.
(I do understand what "plot holes" are though - so in addition to those *many* already mentioned, I'll add one more):
Let's do the surreptitious "hot diamonds for money swap" in an out-of-the-way place - like a rooftop parking area - so nobody can watch and get suspicious, OK? Best if we choose one *without* a minimum of 180 windows overlooking it from directly across the street, (yes, I counted), as we saunter around outside the getaway vehicle, dressed in our identical dark coveralls and knit watch-caps while carrying the big black bag of booty and clutching our machine guns. Ya think?
Should be good, uh-huh...
I'm legally deaf and far-sighted and I have an IQ that would probably qualify me to be marked down 30% at your local 99-cent store. I only completed two years of high school and when people start talking about things like "character arcs", "long shots", "cutaway", "out-takes", "dailies", etc., regarding the art of film-making, I really have no idea as to what they're talking about.
But even I could make a better movie than this one.
(I do understand what "plot holes" are though - so in addition to those *many* already mentioned, I'll add one more):
Let's do the surreptitious "hot diamonds for money swap" in an out-of-the-way place - like a rooftop parking area - so nobody can watch and get suspicious, OK? Best if we choose one *without* a minimum of 180 windows overlooking it from directly across the street, (yes, I counted), as we saunter around outside the getaway vehicle, dressed in our identical dark coveralls and knit watch-caps while carrying the big black bag of booty and clutching our machine guns. Ya think?
Diamond heist goes bad - so goes this movie
misterchilleny11 September 2011
Maybe the second half of this movie gets better. I don't know because I couldn't stand watching any more than I did. I forgave the cheesy film look, figuring it was intended to be part of the look and feel of calibre of these characters - low grade hoodlums and unprofessional professionals. The sequencing of events is clumsy. The believability of what each of the characters is doing is way low. How one of the mob guys shoots himself in the head while waiting for "a bag" (was it pot? big deal!) is highly questionable. That the diamond guy ("hit man") finds our protagonist so easily, then tells him he's got a week (a week!?) to make good...well it was about there I began to consider to quitting this movie. How did they get Bruce Willis to sign on? Willis as the "mob boss" was...well, what can I say. His smirk just didn't convey Godfather. This movie is not worth watching.
It has Bruce Willis...The rest is crap
KineticSeoul18 February 2013
This is a straight to DVD crap and the only remotely good thing about it is that it has Bruce Willis and he plays a ruthless mob boss. The script is just really dumb and it's clear none of the writers thought things through. It's just poorly written and doesn't make much sense. 50 cent is a horrible actor and I don't know why he keeps getting roles. He is the protagonist in this and it's difficult to sit through his acting. I am not sure if it's intentional but some scenes came off more humorous than serious and intimidating. It's tries to be cool and slick but just comes off dull, corny, lame and boring. And tries to copy Guy Ritchie's trademark movies but fails miserably. This is a skip. Not even worth a rental.
1/10
1/10
The Good, The Questionable, The Bad and Why...
marvinpmcd12 September 2011
THE GOOD - Honestly, not much! The trailer was okay if that counts.
THE QUESTIONABLE - Everything in this movie is questionable.
THE BAD - Okay, what is this movie about? We have a revenge story; the main character (who is a bad guy) is left for dead after a heist. Our hero and his friend are shot by their best friend in the whole world, the "badder" bad guy. But our hero who is also a bad man gets off lucky; he lives to fight another day because he is just a lucky man as previously stated. In fact, he is lucky throughout the whole movie setting things up to help him facilitate his revenge. Hence the title, Setup. Okay, a story involving a bunch of characters that make no sense enfolds before our eyes. In the story that enfolds before us we experience bad acting, bad directing, bad cinematography, bad action, bad story, bad plot, bad dialogue, bad editing, bad camera-work, and bad everything... And to make it even better the story ends in a "stupid" way. Okay, maybe stupid is not the most clever word in the dictionary but this story is all over the place. I will not comment on the rest of the movie's plot but if you choose to watch this movie, this is what you will be heading into.
WHY - Do I give this movie a 2/10 IMDb style or a regular 1 out of 4 stars. Honestly, look, obviously $20,000,000 out of the $22,000,000 spent on making this movie was spent on casting the actors and nothing else. Instead, it should have been spent on a competent director and writer. Usually I don't go so hard on a movie but hey, what do they say, "I can never get back the hour and a half" I spent setting up to watch the "Setup".
THE QUESTIONABLE - Everything in this movie is questionable.
THE BAD - Okay, what is this movie about? We have a revenge story; the main character (who is a bad guy) is left for dead after a heist. Our hero and his friend are shot by their best friend in the whole world, the "badder" bad guy. But our hero who is also a bad man gets off lucky; he lives to fight another day because he is just a lucky man as previously stated. In fact, he is lucky throughout the whole movie setting things up to help him facilitate his revenge. Hence the title, Setup. Okay, a story involving a bunch of characters that make no sense enfolds before our eyes. In the story that enfolds before us we experience bad acting, bad directing, bad cinematography, bad action, bad story, bad plot, bad dialogue, bad editing, bad camera-work, and bad everything... And to make it even better the story ends in a "stupid" way. Okay, maybe stupid is not the most clever word in the dictionary but this story is all over the place. I will not comment on the rest of the movie's plot but if you choose to watch this movie, this is what you will be heading into.
WHY - Do I give this movie a 2/10 IMDb style or a regular 1 out of 4 stars. Honestly, look, obviously $20,000,000 out of the $22,000,000 spent on making this movie was spent on casting the actors and nothing else. Instead, it should have been spent on a competent director and writer. Usually I don't go so hard on a movie but hey, what do they say, "I can never get back the hour and a half" I spent setting up to watch the "Setup".
Awful, just.. awful.
elias-westling13 September 2011
I started watching this expecting a bad action flick, but jeez. This is the worst film I've seen in a long, long time. Inconsistent, poor-acted, poor-directed, poor-written trash riddled with plot holes.
To think that 22 million dollars was spent on this makes me depressed. I am sure that at least 21 of those could have been saved by not hiring the poster names, and the film would have been better off. When you are peddling garbage like this you DON'T want to get the audience's expectations up, even if the expectations already are low.
Do yourself a favor. Don't waste your time on this. And for god's sake, don't waste your money.
To think that 22 million dollars was spent on this makes me depressed. I am sure that at least 21 of those could have been saved by not hiring the poster names, and the film would have been better off. When you are peddling garbage like this you DON'T want to get the audience's expectations up, even if the expectations already are low.
Do yourself a favor. Don't waste your time on this. And for god's sake, don't waste your money.
Terrible!
johnwesleyharding18 September 2011
This is probably the worst movie i've seen this year. Dreadful acting by almost everyone. Most of the characters at first sight appear to have a major scene in the movie but somehow they're never shown again after a minute of screen time. 50 cent is nowhere near a Rambo like gangster but instead a gangster who is slapped on the head after every few minutes and his character is not the least bit likable considering he has the main role. This movie is not recommended even if you are watching it for free on blue-ray. If you are looking to have a laugh at 50 cent's acting then this might be the film for you but it's the sort which leaves you regretting that you watched it, I mean it's so bad that you can't even laugh at how terrible it is rather than feeling sorry for yourself and your money.
Just don't.
chris-350316 September 2011
Unfortunately this film took Bruce Willis and dragged him down to 50 cent's level of acting, poor show all round.
The plot is very thin, they have tried to add several twists which just come off as cheesy and ill thought. The supporting cast is weak at best and the awkward acting inabilities shines through scene after scene which gets frustrating after about 10 minutes.
If you want to see a revenge film then I would recommend Faster, or Death Sentence, a Bruce Willis film then take your pick.
I really don't like film companies using A list actors as bait to sell a poor film, hence why I felt compelled to warn others.
The plot is very thin, they have tried to add several twists which just come off as cheesy and ill thought. The supporting cast is weak at best and the awkward acting inabilities shines through scene after scene which gets frustrating after about 10 minutes.
If you want to see a revenge film then I would recommend Faster, or Death Sentence, a Bruce Willis film then take your pick.
I really don't like film companies using A list actors as bait to sell a poor film, hence why I felt compelled to warn others.
This movie is better than it's score suggest.
kingstonhawke28 October 2012
I normally only review movies while they are fresh in my mind, but I felt almost obligated to say how much I liked this movie to try and counter the rating that it's got.
I think a lot of the hate is coming from the cast. People are mad that Willis isn't in it more, that Phillippe (who is one of the top actors period) is playing a bad guy, and that 50 Cent is in it at all. But truth be told, I liked the cast for the movie. The acting and script weren't Oscar worthy, but watching it late at night on Netflix with no expectations it actually impressed me.
This movie is predictable, but so are 99% of movies to me, so that really didn't bother me as much as it seems to every one else. Other than that. If you're a fan of gritty, fun movies, you'll like. If you're wanting to see something complex and moving emotionally, you wont.
I think a lot of the hate is coming from the cast. People are mad that Willis isn't in it more, that Phillippe (who is one of the top actors period) is playing a bad guy, and that 50 Cent is in it at all. But truth be told, I liked the cast for the movie. The acting and script weren't Oscar worthy, but watching it late at night on Netflix with no expectations it actually impressed me.
This movie is predictable, but so are 99% of movies to me, so that really didn't bother me as much as it seems to every one else. Other than that. If you're a fan of gritty, fun movies, you'll like. If you're wanting to see something complex and moving emotionally, you wont.
Don't Let Bruce Willis Draw You In!
benoblest17 September 2011
Everything about this movie is horrible, except for Bruce Willis (Just cause hes Bruce Willis). However, Bruce Willis is barely in the movie at all, he doesn't even appear until almost the end of the film and also has a very insignificant role in the film (Which I find very humorous considering his front and center image on the cover). Mike Gunther simply tries way to hard, and is just not good at what he does. The acting, plot, writing, and characters are outrageously cheesy, extremely predictable, and poorly made. I really don't know why Bruce Willis agreed to even show his face in this movie, but then again he has been in some pretty questionable movies. All in all, don't let Bruce Willis draw you in to watch the film as hes not really in it. Also stay away from anything Mike Gunther makes, and/or 50-Cent "Acts" in.
don't believe the bad reviews , it's a cool off Hollywood action flick .
shlomotvr14 October 2016
sure , this movie have some obvious disadvantages- some b or c list actors , plot holes , clichés and so on . but it also has it merits - nice cinematography , high production values, cool soundtrack , the use of unprofessional actors who gives it an almost neorealism flare , the locations , but most of all i enjoyed the non Hollywood feel , an almost anarchistic feel i might say , of going off the platform of your regular blockbaster .
50 cent is no denzel washington but still he possesses some genuine quality that is hard to define .
it really give you some kind of weird rush that no mainstream Hollywood film would give you .
50 cent is no denzel washington but still he possesses some genuine quality that is hard to define .
it really give you some kind of weird rush that no mainstream Hollywood film would give you .
Formulaic Crime Thriller
zardoz-1326 September 2011
Warning: Spoilers
"Beatdown" writer & director Mike Gunther's "Set Up" qualifies as a fair to middling crime thriller with characters who are lucky if they live and stupid because they die. A volatile young hood betrays two life-long friends after they pull off a daring daylight diamond heist in the middle of downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, in the winter. "Way of the Gun" actor Ryan Phillippe is splendidly cast as a double-crossing villain named Vincent Long who kills his two best friends without a qualm. Unfortunately, Vincent doesn't finish the job with coup de graces for both of his old pals. Predictably, Sonny (a subdued Curtis '50 Cents' Jackson) survives the shooting with a slug stuck in his collarbone that his tattoo artist friend Joey extracts. Afterward, our protagonist sets out to exact vengeance on the psychotic Vincent. Wrecking revenge is more complicated that Sonny imagined. Acting on a tip from Joey, Sonny interrupts a poker game among wiseguys. Since they know nothing about Vincent, Sonny makes a mistake and robs them. Sonny encounters a ruthless mob boss, Mr. Biggs (Bruce Willis in a cameo) and tangles with Russian mobsters as well as the Italian gunsels. Gunther never wears out his welcome with this trim 85-minute opus, but it is formula from fade-in to fade-out done with more finesse than is customary. This is another one of those thrillers that opens in the present and then flashes back into the past and ultimately goes full circle back to the present. We learn that Vincent decided to take the diamonds to bribe the warden at the prison where his dastardly dad is serving time to keep him out of the general population. Veteran character actor James Remar of "48 HRS" makes a strong impression as a racist prison inmate who is Vincent's father. Randy Couture of "The Expendables" has a minor role as Petey, a lame-brained thug who accidentally shoots himself when he is playing with gun. Shaun Toub plays a mysterious hit-man who skulks about on the periphery searching for the stolen diamonds. His first encounter with Vincent yields an amusing surprise. Gunther contrives some interesting dialogue, but after 45 minutes it looks like he is channeling Quentin Tarantino. Every time that a new character is introduced, we see a graphic that identifies them. During one scene, a criminal sells marijuana that has been smuggled into the United States in the intestinal track of a boa constrictor; the dealer calls it 'snakeweed' because customs doesn't want to X-ray a snake. "Punisher: War Zone" lenser Steve Gainer has an annoying habit of abruptly zooming in fractionally in most scenes as if to endow this film with a sense of spontaneity.
Written and directed by a 12 year old kid????
God_of_Thunder18 September 2011
I'll make this short and sweet.
I saw this movie so you don't have to !
1) Worst script/screenplay EVER!
2) Nothing made any sense! I mean... nothing !
3) Worst plot ever, plot holes so big you want to cry!
4) Worst dialogue ever in the history of cinema...
This felt like totally amateur night... all the scenes were put together as if two twelve year old boys were sitting down and making the "best action movie of all times".
The director clearly wanted to make something "cool", and tried to copy movies like Pulp Fiction and every gangster movie made by Guy Richie.
But in the end, everything just fails. The movie is totally filled up with WTF moments... actually almost EVERY single scene didn't make any sense!
I hope this director NEVER will make another film again in his life.
I had to give it 1/10... but this disaster of a "movie" truly deserves a "0".
I saw this movie so you don't have to !
1) Worst script/screenplay EVER!
2) Nothing made any sense! I mean... nothing !
3) Worst plot ever, plot holes so big you want to cry!
4) Worst dialogue ever in the history of cinema...
This felt like totally amateur night... all the scenes were put together as if two twelve year old boys were sitting down and making the "best action movie of all times".
The director clearly wanted to make something "cool", and tried to copy movies like Pulp Fiction and every gangster movie made by Guy Richie.
But in the end, everything just fails. The movie is totally filled up with WTF moments... actually almost EVERY single scene didn't make any sense!
I hope this director NEVER will make another film again in his life.
I had to give it 1/10... but this disaster of a "movie" truly deserves a "0".
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