ChrisThilk Blog

There’s only the barest of plots that runs through Shoot ‘Em Up, the violent comedy with Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti. It’s really more “excuse” than “plot” when it is there and doesn’t amount to much, though the movie is by and large so much fun that doesn’t even wind up mattering. 

Owen plays a man of violence who unwittingly steps into a situation that finds him protecting a newborn baby from a gang of tough guys who wants that baby as dead as its mother. Giamatti is the head of the gang that’s just disposed of said mother and is after the baby, though the reasons why aren’t clear until the last 15 minutes of the movie and make little sense when they’re revealed, so don’t worry about it. 

The violence is completely over the top and largely unbelievable, but the performances by the two leads are so committed that they’re absolutely engaging. Owen seems to be out to prove that he could have handled the most outrageous stunts the Bond producers could have thrown at him if he had been tapped for that role. And Giamatti gives a wonderfully enthusiastic showing that makes it clear he’s having an absolute blast in a very shallow role but still bringing his usual level of excellence to it.