Brad reviews LIONHEART (1990), starring Jean-Claude Van Damme!

Posted on September 2, 2025 by Bradley Crain

As a teenager of the late 80’s, I became a huge fan of Jean-Claude Van Damme when I watched movies like BLOODSPORT (1988), CYBORG (1989), KICKBOXER (1989), and DEATH WARRANT (1990). He really seemed to be going big-time with movies like UNIVERSAL SOLDIER (1992), HARD TARGET (1993) and especially TIMECOP (1994). Unfortunately, through a variety of problems, including a reportedly uncontrollable ego, a seemingly never ending supply of gratuitous butt shots for the ladies, and potential drug issues, his star would begin to wane in the mid-1990’s and he’d soon find his career heading the wrong direction. Through it all though, I’ve always loved Van Damme, and I still like to watch his movies (both new and old) to this day. One of the films that he made in his prime was LIONHEART (1990). I remember renting the movie as soon as it became available at our local video store, and even though I don’t hear it spoken of often these days, it’s always been one of my favorite films of the so-called “Muscles from Brussels!”

LIONHEART stars Van Damme as Lyon Gaultier, a French Foreign Legionnaire who deserts his post in North Africa after finding out that his drug addict brother, who lives in Los Angeles, has been set on fire and is barely clinging to life. Determined to help his brother’s family, Lyon goes AWOL and hops a boat to the United States of America. Unfortunately, Lyon finds himself stranded in New York with no money, until he stumbles across an underground street fight. With the connections of a hustler named Joshua (Harrison Page) and a sexy fight organizer named Cynthia (Deborah Rennard), Lyon’s talent in the ring allows him to make the money he needs to go to L.A. When he finally makes it to the west coast, his brother has passed away, leaving huge medical bills for his wife Helene (Lisa Pelikan) and young daughter, Nicole (Ashley Johnson). Continuing to fight in the underground market in L.A. to provide funds for his sister-in-law, Lyon takes on increasingly dangerous opponents, including the savage Attila (Abdel Qissi) in a high-stakes fight that could settle his family’s financial problems for good… if it doesn’t kill him.

I mentioned earlier that I’m a big fan of LIONHEART. With that said, I can certainly see some flaws in the film. The performances aren’t all great. For example, Deborah Rennard is somewhat ridiculous as the sexy, duplicitous Cynthia. Her character is as cliched as it gets, even if she does look good in her see-through stockings. It’s also too long. Clocking in at almost an hour and fifty minutes, the film is at least twenty minutes too long. There are definitely scenes that could have been trimmed down to make for a more efficient movie. Flaws acknowledged, I watched it again today, and I still love the movie. Directed by Sheldon Lettich (DOUBLE IMPACT), LIONHEART delivers the goods as a badass, fight film with a heart. The action sequences drew me in with Van Damme’s athletic spins and kicks, but it also reminded me of my favorite film of all time, HARD TIMES (1975) starring Charles Bronson. In HARD TIMES, Bronson takes out a cocky bastard with one punch to the face. In LIONHEART, Van Damme takes out a cocky bastard with one punch to the nuts. Both films deliver final showdowns against awesome opponents that deliver brutal and satisfying climaxes to the action. And both films go for real emotion. In HARD TIMES, those relationships are limited to the men in Bronson’s life, but in LIONHEART, Lyon’s relationships with his friend Joshua, as well as his love for his niece and widowed sister-in-law really set the film apart. Van Damme isn’t a great actor at this point in his career, but there’s just something really appealing about his unconditional love for his family. He won me over with his earnest performance, and I was all in when everything comes to a head at the end. It was also fun seeing producer Lawrence Bender (PULP FICTION, ANNA AND THE KING, KILL BILL) cameo in an early fight scene as a doofus with a pony tail who gets his ass handed to him by Van Damme. That’s just fun movie stuff.

Playing on Amazon Prime as I type, I easily recommend LIONHEART to any person who likes Van Damme or action films of the 80’s and 90’s. It may be as cheesy as hell, but in my opinion, it’s one of the star’s best films.

Famous Actors Throughout the Decades: Charles Bronson – 1950’s!

Posted on August 26, 2025 by Bradley Crain

Today I’m starting a series about my favorite actors and their most important work in a particular decade, completely from my limited perspective. What a better actor for me to start with than Charles Bronson, my all time favorite. I hope to share some historical context as well as some tidbits about his film and TV appearances at the time. I know I’ll miss some good stuff, and I welcome your comments on that. We’ll see how this goes!

Charles Bronson entered the world of acting using the name Charles Buchinsky. His very first role is in the film YOU’RE IN THE NAVY NOW (1951) with Gary Cooper! This also happens to be the film debuts of actors Lee Marvin and Jack Warden! Bronson himself has said that he got the role because he could “belch on cue!”

Bronson worked with the best actors on earth from the very beginning of his career. Still billed as Buchinsky, Bronson would share the screen with Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn in 1952’s PAT AND MIKE!

I was lucky enough to catch HOUSE OF WAX (1953) on the big screen last summer. Bronson, still billed as Buchinsky at the time, co-starred as Igor in the 3-D, Vincent Price box office smash. He had some amazingly creepy scenes in the film!

For the first time in his career, he would be credited as Charles Bronson in the Alan Ladd western DRUM BEAT (1954). He changed his name during the McCarthy era to avoid the negative scrutiny and suspicion that a Slavic surname might bring, fearing it could damage his budding acting career during the strong anti-Communist sentiment in America. Under his new name, Bronson steals the film right out from under Ladd in the role of the rebellious Indian leader Captain Jack! This film should have catapulted Bronson into leading roles, but Hollywood didn’t really know what to do with him at this point.

A couple of years later, Bronson would appear in a supporting role in the Glenn Ford western, JUBAL (1956). Also co-starring Ernest Borgnine and Rod Steiger, Bronson’s part is small but pivotal. I love the film and its Grand Tetons setting.

1958 would be a year where Charles Bronson would get his first leading film roles, as well as his own TV series. First up was the B-western SHOWDOWN AT BOOT HILL (1958), directed by Gene Fowler, Jr. I’m a big fan of this short, simple oater. I think Bronson gives an excellent performance as the gunslinger with a chip on his shoulder, who really just wants a girl he can settle down with and a place he can call home. I recommend it to any person who likes 1950’s westerns and Bronson.

Next, the legendary Roger Corman would direct Bronson in the biopic MACHINE GUN KELLY (1958). This is an important film in Bronson’s career. French star Alain Delon would request Bronson as his co-star in the 1968 film FAREWELL, FRIEND based on his performance in MACHINE GUN KELLY, and that film would help turn Bronson into one of the biggest male movie stars in the world. It’s another good film that draws another strong performance from Bronson as the infamous gangster who was tough as long as he had his machine gun. Quentin Tarantino is a big fan of the movie calling it the “best film Corman ever directed.” A poster for MACHINE GUN KELLY can be seen at Jack Rabbit Slims in Tarantino’s sensational PULP FICTION (1994).

After appearing on countless TV shows during the 50’s, Bronson got his own beginning in 1958. The show, MAN WITH A CAMERA, would run for two seasons and produce a total of 29 episodes, with such excellent guest stars as Tom Laughlin, Angie Dickinson and Lawrence Tierney. A young Bronson is very good in the series, easily handling the action and the dialogue. He’s so good in fact, that it really is hard to believe that mainstream stardom would continue to elude him for another decade. In his characteristically sarcastic way, Bronson would joke that he played second fiddle to a light bulb, or something along those lines, but it’s a series I definitely recommend.

I hope you’ve enjoyed a trip through the 50’s with the legendary Charles Bronson. There is so much more I could have covered, but I chose the appearances that have affected my life the most! The 1960’s would prove to be a successful, frustrating and ultimately rewarding decade for Charles Bronson. We’ll get to that next time on “Famous Actors Throughout the Decades: Charles Bronson!”

What do Sean Connery and Charles Bronson have in common?

Posted on August 25, 2025 by Bradley Crain

Sean Connery in DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER (1971)

Sean Connery and Charles Bronson, despite being much different actors, shared the Golden Globe Henrietta Award for “World Film Favorite – Male” back in 1972. As the ultimate Bronson fan, I’ve always appreciated this special connection between the icons.

Happy Birthday in cinema heaven, Sean! We miss you!

Brad reviews DEAD IN A HEARTBEAT (2002)!

Posted on August 24, 2025 by Bradley Crain

DEAD IN A HEARTBEAT is a 2002 TV movie that stars Judge Reinhold as Tom Royko, the head of Seattle bomb squad, as he finds himself trying to stop a mad bomber named Zachary Franklin (Timothy Busfield). Franklin blames heart surgeon Gillian Hayes (Penelope Ann Miller) for the death of his son and makes it his mission in life to make her suffer like he has. His plan… volunteer at the hospital where Dr. Hayes works, rig their supply of pacemakers with explosives, and then implement a plan to begin blowing up her patients on the anniversary of his son’s death. When Royko figures out what’s going on, he enlists the help of Dr. Hayes to identify the next potential victims and stop the deranged Franklin before another innocent person’s chest explodes!

DEAD IN A HEARTBEAT is an entertaining TV movie. If you like Hallmark mysteries and Lifetime movies, it’s my guess that you will enjoy this film. The plot is a lot of fun… I love the movie SPEED and the “madman setting off ticking human time bombs while taunting the police” reminded me of that excellent thriller on multiple occasions. While I’m not suggesting this movie is in the same league as the Keanu Reeves / Sandra Bullock action classic, I am saying that I did feel genuine tension and excitement at times as some of the scenes played out, and I wasn’t really expecting that. As far as the performances, I must admit I really enjoyed watching Judge Reinhold in the lead. He’s not tough at all, but he does have a likable, sarcastic charm that appeals to me. After loving him in 80’s movies like BEVERLY HILLS COP and RUTHLESS PEOPLE, it was nice seeing him in this role. I only give Penelope Ann Miller average marks for her performance as the heart doctor who starts off really arrogant before having a crisis of conscience when the bad guy starts offing her former patients. She has a couple of solid moments, but for the most part I just found her competent in the role. Timothy Busfield is definitely good as the villain, but this movie’s TV roots left his character somewhat underdeveloped. I think the part could have worked better if more time had been devoted to the details that lead to him losing his grip on reality.

While not a must-see, DEAD ON A HEARTBEAT turned out to be an enjoyable, undemanding watch as I was scrolling through Amazon Prime. If you don’t mind a little absurdity with your early 2000’s, TV action movies, you’ll probably like this one.

Brad’s Scene of the Day – The Dwarves sing “Misty Mountains” in THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY (2012)!

Posted on August 22, 2025 by Bradley Crain

To celebrate the 54th birthday of actor Richard Armitage, I decided to watch this awesome scene from THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY where he plays the badass Thorin. This is such a cool scene and a highlight of the series. Enjoy!

Late Night Retro Television Review: Highway to Heaven 4.10 “A Dream of Wild Horses”

Posted on August 21, 2025 by Bradley Crain

Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Thursdays, we will be reviewing Highway to Heaven, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1989. The entire show is currently streaming on Amazon Prime, Tubi and other services!

Episode 4.10 “A Dream of Wild Horses”

(Dir. by Michael Landon, originally aired on December 2nd, 1987)

In this episode, traveling angel Jonathan Smith (Michael Landon), and his companion Mark Gordon (Victor French) arrive at a struggling ranch where the widow Billie Harwood (Gail Strickland) is trying to keep her late husband’s legacy alive while caring for her young son Richie (Jason Horst) and aging father Jet Sanders (Richard Farnsworth). It seems that Jet, the patriarch of the family, sort of lost his will to live when he lost his wife and then his son in law, a man he truly thought of as a son. As Jonathan and Mark arrive on the scene, the family members are all at a breaking point. Jet wishes he would just die and quit being a burden. Billie is completely overwhelmed with the ranch, and you get the feeling she’s never truly mourned the loss of her husband. And Richie, who needs someone to love him and pay attention to him, instead is mostly ignored by his family. Jonathan, Mark, a pack of wild horses, and some divine compassion turn out to be just what the family needs to find the inspiration to start putting the pieces of their lives back together.

Directed by Michael Landon, “A Dream of Wild Horses” is everything I would expect from this series. Considering this episode was in season 4, it’s possible the formula was starting to wear thin with viewers back in 1987, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. For a man like me who loves a good western, I especially enjoyed the ranch setting, the wild horses, and the presence of veteran, Oscar nominated actor Richard Farnsworth as Grandpa Jet Sanders. He’s believable as the man who’s lost his purpose in life, but he’s even better when he turns things around at the end. One of the things I like about this series is the way Jonathan always knows exactly what buttons to push to get the characters going in the right direction. From bluntly telling Grandpa that he needs to quit feeling sorry for himself, to offering the widow a shoulder to cry on, and helping both of them see how much Richie needs their love and guidance, Jonathan’s genuine compassion is something this world really does need. Skeptical viewers may even roll their eyes, but I choose to accept the episode’s inspiring messages at face value. There have been times in my own life when I just needed someone else to care, and this series leans into those types of interactions. This family was broken, and Jonathan and Mark helped turn things around for them by simply caring. Things may be more complex and nuanced in the real world, but the simple act of caring will always be powerful.

Brad reviews COLLEGE KICKBOXERS (1991)!

Posted on August 21, 2025 by Bradley Crain

Continuing my theme of low budget, direct-to-video, B-movie action films from the early 90’s, I found a movie called COLLEGE KICKBOXERS playing on Amazon Prime.

Also known as TRAINED TO FIGHT in some circles, COLLEGE KICKBOXERS follows James Caulfield (Ken McLeod, credited as Ken Rendall Johnson for some unknown reason), a young man with martial arts skills, as he navigates his freshman year of college. Things just aren’t going so well for James his first week of school. First, his roommate Mark (Marc D. Williams), an upperclassman, isn’t very nice to him when they first meet, so it appears that their dorm room may not be a place of peace and relaxation this semester. Second, the pretty girl he sets his sights on, Kimberly (Kendra Tucker), seems much more interested in saving the whales, the ozone layer and the planet than she does in dating him. Rude! And third, to cap it all off, one day while James and Mark are working out their differences through martial arts sparring, a racist gang called the White Tigers show up and hurl some very offensive slurs at Mark, who’s black. While James doesn’t seem to like Mark much at this point, he dislikes the racist bigots even more so he defends Mark’s honor, putting himself on a collision course of pain with The White Tigers and their A-hole leader Craig Tanner (played by Matthew Ray Cohen, whose only other role in his career was “Dancer #1” in the classic erotic thriller BODY CHEMISTRY). In all fairness, this clash with racists did result in James and Mark becoming best friends so that was a pleasant and unexpected surprise.

When it looks like things can’t get much worse for James, Craig Tanner and his racists show up at the Chinese restaurant where he works and proceed to take advantage of their superior numbers and kick his ass real good. That’s when something strange happens, the annoying cook Wing (Tak-Wing Tang), who had just messed up James’ chances to score with a chick a few minutes earlier, steps in and shows himself to be a kung fu master, easily dispatching the White Tigers with moves defined by speed, grace, balance, agility, and acupunctural science. Amazed by what he has just seen, James wants some of that and begs Sifu Wing to train him so that he too can become a martial arts master. Receiving the kinds of real-life lessons from Wing that could never be learned in a college classroom, James soon finds himself putting it all on the line in a martial arts tournament that gives him the chance to win $25,000 for his now-injured bestie’s martial arts dojo for at-risk youth. As a bonus, he’ll also get the opportunity to humiliate and destroy the White Tigers once and for all!

An impartial critical assessment of COLLEGE KICKBOXERS would probably not be very kind. For starters Ken McLeod, AKA Ken Rendall Johnson, is not a very good actor. Neither are Marc D. Williams, Kendra Tucker or Matthew Ray Cohen. To be completely honest, they’re pretty bad. I think it would be fair to say that both Ken’s and Marc’s line deliveries are awkward and amateurish, that Kendra is annoying, and that Matthew is over-the-top, and not in a good way. The script is nothing to write home about either, completely relying on the cliches of the genre and the cheesiest of dialogue. In another somewhat bad sign, clocking in at just 88 minutes, it doesn’t necessarily feel like a short movie as the middle portion definitely leaves you wanting more action to show up.

With that said though, I still had a great time with COLLEGE KICKBOXERS. I think the main reason is that I just love a good underdog story where bullies, and in this case racists, get their comeuppance, and at-risk youth get their own dojos. And I really enjoyed Tak-Wing Tang’s performance as Sifu Wing! He underplays the role in a subtle and humorous way that I found really appealing. Wing also completed the action choreography, which is the true highlight of the film. McLeod isn’t great in the acting department, but he does a fine job when called upon to kick butt. To further illustrate my appreciation of Wing’s action direction, the year after this film was made, he would serve as an action choreographer for Jackie Chan’s amazing POLICE STORY III: SUPERCOP, and a couple of years after that he’d work on Chan’s DRUNKEN MASTER II. The man is talented! And finally, COLLEGE KICKBOXERS has that intangible nostalgic charm that takes me back to the early 90’s when I’d scan over my local video store’s entire inventory, an inventory that was chock full of these types of movies. I enjoyed watching them back then even if they were silly and cheesy, and watching movies like that now takes me back to that more simple and undemanding time. There’s real value in that to me!

Brad reviews THE NAKED GUN (2025), starring Liam Neeson!

Posted on August 20, 2025 by Bradley Crain

When I first saw that THE NAKED GUN was being rebooted with Liam Neeson as Frank Drebin, Jr., I must admit that I was quite skeptical. You see, the original THE NAKED GUN (1988) with Leslie Nielsen came out when I was 15 years old, and I remember watching it at the movie theater on a field trip with our high school’s Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) club. I loved it so much! I eagerly watched THE NAKED GUN 2 1/2 (1991) and NAKED GUN 33 1/3 (1994) at the theaters as well. To be completely honest, this series is one of my favorites of my “growing into an adult” years, and I didn’t want to see it screwed up. When the trailer was released a couple of months ago my reaction was cautious optimism as I must admit it looked quite funny, and I decided that I would go watch it in the theater when it came out. Well, tonight my wife and I headed to the Cinemark in Little Rock to see what director Akiva Schaffer and his crew had come up with…

In THE NAKED GUN (2025), dedicated Detective Lt. Frank Drebin Jr. (Liam Neeson) follows in his father’s footsteps by leading Police Squad and causing an endless array of problems for Police Chief Davis (CCH Pounder). When a bank heist is staged by Sig Gustafson (Kevin Durand) in order to obtain a mysterious P.L.O.T. Device, Drebin teams up with his partner, Captain Ed Hocken Jr. (Paul Walter Hauser), and the beautiful crime novelist Beth Davenport (Pamela Anderson) to investigate. Their subsequent probe leads them to tech mogul Richard Cane (Danny Huston) and his sinister plot to use the device to revert humanity to a base barbaric state as the balls drop on New Year’s Eve. With the help of his deceased father’s spirit that’s being housed in the body of a large owl, Drebin goes all out to foil Cane’s plans while simultaneously falling in love with Beth!

I’m going to go ahead and alleviate any suspense and state that I love the new NAKED GUN movie. I laughed out loud throughout the entire film, including the end credits, and I wasn’t the only one as there were people in our showing that were laughing much louder than me. It was a fun “crowd experience,” and I’m so glad we caught it in the theater. Not every joke is funny, but in the tradition of the original series, they come so fast and furious that there’s a good chance the next joke will be hilarious. Liam Neeson does a great job as Frank Drebin, Jr., infusing the character with just the right amount of seriousness to allow the absurdity all around him to be played for laughs. I told a friend a few months ago that I’d be really impressed if Neeson was able to pull this role off, and I’m glad to report that he passes with flying colors. He doesn’t make you forget the comedic genius of Leslie Nielsen, but he’s darn good. And Pamela Anderson is perfect in the crime novelist / love interest role. I haven’t seen her in anything in a long time, but she’s truly hilarious in the film. After watching her performance, I honestly don’t think any actress could have done any better. The rest of the game cast, including Paul Walter Hauser, Danny Huston and Kevin Durand each have good moments that add to the fun. I also enjoyed some of the specific throwbacks to the original series, including brief appearances by Priscilla Presley, Weird Al Yankovic, and especially the stuffed beaver, which got a big laugh out of me, just like it did when I was 15!

Overall, I had a great time at the movie theater with THE NAKED GUN (2025). Director Akiva Schaffer delivers a hilarious, 85 minute film that’s a worthy follow-up to the original Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker / Leslie Nielsen classics. What else could you ask for?!!

Brad reviews SHOWDOWN (1993), starring Billy Blanks and Patrick Kilpatrick!

Posted on August 19, 2025 by Bradley Crain

Are you a fan of THE KARATE KID? If you are, then I have the movie for you… SHOWDOWN (1993)! What’s better is that it’s now streaming on Amazon Prime, so you can go watch it right now!

SHOWDOWN is primarily the story of Ken Marx (Kenn Scott), a high school student who has recently moved to a new city with his mom. When he enrolls in the local high school, he catches the eye of the beautiful Julie (Christine Taylor), unaware that her boyfriend is a bullying asshole named Tom (Ken McLeod), a young martial artist trained by the ruthless sensei Lee (Patrick Kilpatrick). SHOWDOWN is also the story of ex-cop Billy Grant (Billy Blanks), who accidentally killed evil sensei Lee’s brother seven years earlier when breaking up a wild party one night when he was on duty with his partner Spinelli (Mike Genovese). Unable to cope with killing a man, Billy is now working as a janitor at the high school. The two main characters come together one afternoon when Tom gives Ken a good beating for having the nerve to talk to his property, I mean his girlfriend, Julie. Billy sees Ken doubled over in pain after taking a shot from Tom in the face and the gut, so he reluctantly decides to help the new kid, eventually introducing him to self-defense techniques and martial arts that will help him stand up to the bully. His teaching methods are quite unconventional and include such humbling tasks as cleaning toilets and urinals. The stories all come to a head one night when Ken and Tom fight it out in the ring. When evil sensei Lee tries to involve himself in the battle between the students, Billy gets his own shot at redemption when he steps in to enforce law and order for the first time in many years!

Based on the plot description above, it’s evident that SHOWDOWN is not afraid to wear its “Karate Kid” influences on its sleeve! I had never seen this 1993 B-movie before, so I found a lot of nostalgic fun in its familiar underdog story, with characters even specifically referencing key moments from the 80’s classic. Even if he’s somewhat limited as an actor, Billy Blanks just has this likable presence about him, and he’s definitely believable as a martial arts master. I enjoy watching him. Kenn Scott carries on the tradition of being a 25-year-old man playing a high school student, but he seems much older to me than Ralph Macchio did in THE KARATE KID. Scott in 1993 was much more physically developed than Macchio was in 1984, so while he doesn’t seem reasonable as a high school student, he does seem more reasonable as a fighter. Continuing my comparisons, Christine Taylor is cute as the love interest, but a fifth grade Brad Crain fell head over heels in love with Elizabeth Shue as “Ali with an I.” That’s not Christine’s fault though, and she’s fine here. Finally, I have to give a shoutout to Patrick Kilpatrick as the evil sensei Lee. In a career defined by playing bad guys, his deliriously unhinged, over-the-top performance here is a true highlight of the film.

As for the fight choreography in SHOWDOWN, it’s serviceable and delivered with conviction, but it’s not that great when viewed in 2025 and compared to the better movies of the genre. But that’s okay because the movie does what a lot of movies can’t do… it entertains and moves by at a fast pace. I enjoyed it, and I can easily recommend it to any person who enjoyed THE KARATE KID series or low budget, early 90’s, direct-to-video action.

Brad reviews the romantic comedy THE OTHER END OF THE LINE (2007)!

Posted on August 18, 2025 by Bradley Crain

Back in 2019, I took my wife to Dallas, and while we were there, she asked if we could visit the South Fork Ranch. As many of you probably know, this is the setting for the wildly popular TV series DALLAS, that originally ran from 1978 through 1991 producing 356 episodes. She loved the series growing up and especially enjoyed watching it with her “granny” back in West Virginia. When we got back home from the trip, I hopped onto Amazon and purchased the entire original series for her, a set of TV movies, and even the series reboot that ran from 2012 through 2014, producing another 40 episodes. We watched everything over the next 6 months. The rebooted series starred, among others, Jesse Metcalfe as the grown up version of Christopher Ewing. My wife really liked him in the series, so he’s become one of our favorites that we like to watch on Hallmark and many other movies. The other day I watched a romantic comedy Jesse starred in called THE OTHER END OF THE LINE (2007). It’s currently streaming on Prime, so I decided to write up my thoughts on the film.

In THE OTHER END OF THE LINE, Shriya Saran plays Priya Sethi, a young woman working at a CitiBank call center in Mumbai, India. One day she gets a phone call from Granger Woodruff (Jesse Metcalfe), an American advertising executive, when he becomes a victim of identity theft. While working to resolve the situation, sparks being to fly during their conversations, and Priya, quite smitten with the handsome American, decides to travel to San Francisco to meet him in person. Through a variety of rom-com type circumstances, Priya ends up creating a false identity that she uses as she meets and spends time with Granger. As they continue to hit it off, her deception begins to create some serious complications. These issues come to a head when her very traditional dad, who expects her to marry a guy he’s chosen for her back in India, shows up in San Francisco. The blissfully ignorant Granger is suddenly made aware of Priya’s real life, and the two are faced with rather awkward and difficult decisions for how to move forward. Will Priya choose true love over cultural tradition? Will Granger take a chance and pursue her even though she’s been deceiving him? This is a romantic comedy, so you probably have a good idea how it might play out!

I enjoyed THE OTHER END OF THE LINE mainly because I’m an undemanding sucker for rom-coms, and I liked Jesse Metcalfe and Shriya Saran in the lead roles. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Saran on-screen before, but she’s extremely beautiful and charming, and I can definitely see why Metcalfe’s character would fall in love with her. I did! Metcalfe is good as the business obsessed American who has a bit more depth and heart than you might initially suspect. The leads carry what story there is just fine, and I found myself with a smile on my face as the end credits appeared. With that said, the story itself could be a bit of a problem to more demanding viewers. This has all been done many times before, and there isn’t anything unique to differentiate this film from countless others. Cliches abound as you can pretty much guess what’s going to happen from frame to frame. And the supporting characters aren’t much to write home about either. The “best friends” are exactly what you’d expect them to be, and not really in a good way. The supporting character that had the most potential for me was Saran’s dad. Unfortunately, he was set up to be a goofus for most of the film, so when he gets to flex his acting muscles at the end, the character’s more serious scenes don’t really hit home for me. On another positive note, I did enjoy seeing the contrast in the film’s settings in San Francisco and Mumbai, India. One of the funniest moments in the movie involves Metcalfe’s character’s attempt to get across Mumbai as quickly as possible while navigating different forms of the city’s public transportation.

Overall, I recommend THE OTHER END OF THE LINE to undemanding viewers who enjoy sweet, cookie cutter romantic comedies. I think there’s plenty to enjoy. However, if you watch the movie with one of those people who likes to make fun of everything, that person will have plenty of material as well!