Movie Review - Hobo with a Shotgun

Hobo with a Shotgun (2011)

Starring Rutger Hauer, Brian Downey, Gregory Smith, Nick Bateman, and Molly Dunsworth

Directed by Jason Eisener

***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

Um...where to even begin with this one?  Well, let's start by saying that the title of the film pretty much says it all.  After he hops off a train in the lawless Hope Town, the Hobo (who, it should be noted is simply called "Hobo" throughout the flick) decides that he needs to take matters into his own hands to rid the town of The Drake (Brian Downey), a megalomaniacal crazyman who, along with his two sons Slick (Gregory Smith) and Ivan (Nick Bateman) wreak havoc on the city.  So, the Hobo (Rutger Hauer) purchases a shotgun and takes matters into his own hands.

Hobo with a Shotgun is an awful film...but it means to be.  Meant to be an homage to the violent 1970s grindhouse-style flicks, it certainly never will be mistaken for a good movie.  But, in its own ways, it's an interesting watch.  It's gratuitously bloody, ridiculously over-the-top, and horribly acted for the most part...but those are all characteristics of 1970s exploitation flicks.  The problem, in an odd way, is that Rutger Hauer's Hobo is almost too well-acted to be a part of this movie.  His gritty portrayal is quite subdued and when everything else around him is so completely unbelievable, there are too many hints of realness in his character to make him a perfect fit in the movie.  About halfway through the flick, I was hoping to spend more time with the Hobo than the rather silly villains who made portions of the flick unbearable.  In fact, by the time the film's final thirty minutes rolls around, the whole thing just becomes a bit too over-the-top for my tastes.  (Once I saw the giant octopus, I checked out.)

Still, I can imagine that this would be a funny film to watch with a group of people who have imbibed on perhaps one too many alcoholic beverages.  And while I didn't hate this movie, it's certainly not anything I'd need to watch ever again.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-