Maddie Nichols | Through the Shattered Lens

It’s a dangerous world out there, make no doubt about it.

William Duncan (Clive Standen) thought that his days of violence were behind him. Sure, he did a tour of duty in the military. And yes, he was trained how to kill a man. In fact, he was trained how to kill dozens of men and he did just that as a part of his patriotic duty. But that was the past. Now, William lives in the suburbs of Atlanta and he’s got a pretty nice life.

Unfortunately, one day, William’s life falls apart, shortly after he picks up his 16 year-old daughter, Kat (Maddie Nichols), from softball practice. William’s plan is to pick up his daughter, grab some food for dinner, and then head home. Unfortunately, a gang led by Rory Fetter (Theo Rossi) has a different idea. The time has come for Rory’s younger brother, Danny (Cabot Badsen), to be initiated into the gang. At first, it seems like Danny doesn’t even want to join the gang but still, when he’s ordered to murder a random bystander, he does so. That bystander happens to be Kat.

Danny’s arrested for the murder but he’s released due to the influence of his father, a powerful gangster named Donnie (Bruce Willis). Having been failed by the legal system, William decides to put his military training to good use and get his vengeance. At first, he’s armed with only his dead daughter’s softball bat. Later, he joins up with an arms dealer named Dante (Thomas Jane) and the war truly begins.

It should also be noted that Dante is friends with a shady garage owner named Roach. Roach is played by Mike Tyson. Yes, that Mike Tyson. Tyson doesn’t really get to do much as Roach. His garage does serve as one of the film’s many battlegrounds but, for the most part, Tyson is something of a bystander. It’s easy to see that the main reason he was included in the film was because it would inevitably cause at least a few potential viewers to say, “Hey, Mike Tyson’s in this! Let’s watch!” That said, even with his limited screen time, Mike Tyson has a surprisingly likable screen presence. I don’t think that anyone will ever mistake Tyson for being an actor of great range but he does a good enough job here that it would be foolish for someone not to cast him in a bigger role in a future low-budget action flick.

As for Vendetta, it’s about as pulpy as pulp can get. It’s an action/revenge flick that makes no excuse for being an action/revenge flick and, as a result, it’s difficult not to be entertained by it. The story moves quickly, there aren’t really any slow spots, and the cast does well with their roles. That includes Bruce Willis. This, of course, is one of Willis’s final films. Watching the films that were released after Willis revealed that he was retiring due to aphasia can feel a bit awkward as it’s obvious that the Willis who appeared in these films was quite a bit different from the Willis who appeared in Die Hard. That said, Willis is effectively intimidating in Vendetta. Even if he doesn’t display the wiseguy charm that was his trademark, Willis still has enough of his streetwise, tough guy screen presence that the viewers will be able to buy him as being a feared crime boss.

As far as 2022’s collection of Bruce Willis films go, Vendetta isn’t bad. It’s maybe a smidgen below Gasoline Alley (which, as of this writing, is the best Willis film of 2022) but it’s a hundred times better than American Siege and A Day To Die.

There’s been a murder. Or has there?

Two people emerge from the wilderness, both with a story to tell. Sam Turner (T.C. Matherne) lives in the backwoods. He’s a country boy, right down to his accent and the gun that he carries with him. He’s the type who can lead you to the best places to fish but he gives off a vibe that says that you don’t want to turn your back on him for too long. Accompanying Sam is Robin (Maddie Nichols), a young woman who appears to be shell-shocked. They’ve spent the last few days in the woods. Sam claims that he’s been caring for and protecting Robin as they made their way back to civilization. Robin …. well, Robin doesn’t quite seem to remember exactly what’s been going on.

What both Sam and Robin both agree on is that Robin’s husband, Javier (Kevin Rodriguez), is dead. Javier and Robin were celebrating their first anniversary by going on a camping trip. Javier was an experienced camper. Robin was not. When Sam approached them and offered to show them the best place to fish, they followed him deeper into the forest. According to Sam, he accidentally took a wrong turn and got them lost but is he telling the truth?

Sam says that he accidentally shot Javier. At first, Robin backs up his story but later she says that Sam actually murdered Javier in cold blood and then proceeded to brainwash the shocked Robin to such an extent that Robin couldn’t remember what was true. Sheriff Watkins (Leslie Hendrix) is inclined to believe Robin over Sam. However, things are complicated when the two of them each take a polygraph test. Sam passes. Robin does not.

So, is Sam telling the truth? Sam may have passed the polygraph but he’s so obviously sleazy that it’s hard to believe that he didn’t intentionally kill Javier. Was Robin in on the murder or is she suffering from the after effects of Stockholm Syndrome, the phenomena in which the victim of an abduction will come to trust and, at the times, even help their abductor?

Based on a true story, A Murder To Remember makes it pretty clear from the start who is to be trusted and who isn’t. Sam is obviously guilty and Robin is obviously telling the truth but, for most of the movie, there’s no way to prove any of it. Unfortunately, because the truth is so obvious, the film is never as suspenseful as it could be. Instead of trying to figure out what actually happened, the viewer instead just waits for Sam to finally slip up. It takes a while as this is a rather slow movie, especially by the usually quick paced standards of Lifetime.

The film is at its best when it’s in the wilderness. The film does a good job of capturing just how frightening it can be to be lost when there’s no hint of civilization anywhere around. Maddie Nichols does a great job of capturing the fear that any of us would feel in her situation. She’s not even an experienced camper and now, suddenly, her husband is dead and she’s going to have to depend on her husband’s murderer to survive. That would be enough to send anyone into a state of shock and Nichols effectively portrays the gradual process that leads to Robin remembering what actually happened to Javier.

A Murder To Remember was uneven but, if nothing else, it reminded me of why I don’t go camping.