SKYSCRAPER (2018) – Review

Alright, it’s roughly the Summer midpoint, so let’s escape the “dog days” by heading into the cool confines of the local multiplex and catch a flick that practically screams, “big, loud, blockbuster”. This isn’t a new thing, for the past several decades (maybe since the late 70’s), the Summer action extravaganza has been the domain of several stars that seem to be playing much the same character in every flick (that’s the case with “movie personalities” since the dawn of cinema), who seem to have almost been biological engineered for such “heavy lifting”. For the seventies it was Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson, then with the 80’s they “flexed” their talents to greater heights with Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Toward the end of the decade we got TV stars like Bruce Willis and martial arts masters such as Jean Claude Van-Damn and Steven Seagal. Now we’re getting action stars from the pro wrestling arena, and there’s no one hotter than the man formerly known as “The Rock”, Dwayne Johnson. He seems to be following Arnold’s playbook, by trying to broaden his appeal to audiences beyond the “shoot ’em up, blow ’em up” fans with comedies like CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE and even voicing an animated Disney character in MOANA. This while balancing his time between his roles in franchises like GI JOE, THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS, and now JUMANJI. He’s back doing a stand alone flick (well, it could inspire some follow-ups). This time Johnson has a co-star nearly as big as him, namely the title character. Because this SKYSCRAPER has 240 stories, and (as they said on the TV classic “Naked City”) here’s one of them.

Before the building of said co-star, ten years or so, Will Sawyer (Johnson) leads an elite FBI hostage rescue team. One snowy night, a domestic dispute goes horribly wrong for the team. As his battered body is wheeled into the OR, Will awakens just in time to see the radiant face of an angel of mercy (Neve Campbell) right before she dons her surgical mask. Flash forward to today as Will is married to that angel, Sarah, and they’ve produced an adorable set of twins, Georgia (McKenna Roberts) and Henry (Noah Cottrell). But Will still carries the scars of that fateful night, having lost his left leg just below the knee (replaced by a state-of-the-art prosthetic). Will’s left the Bureau and started a modest security consultant firm. Thanks to a recommendation from another FBI teammate, Ben (Pablo Schreiber), Will has been hired as the head of security at the deluxe 240 story skyscraper known as “The Pearl”, the brainchild of billionaire Zhao Long Ji (Chin Han). Before the upper floor apartments are leased (Will’s family are the first tenants), Zhao wants Will to inspect the off-site operations center and gives him a mini-computer “pass key” that will give Will all access to the Pearl. But on a ferry ride to the center, Will is mugged. This sets off a chain of events that leads to a take over of those upper floors by armed forces who set off a series of fires and explosions. When Will learns that his family is still in their apartment (a special panda feeding trek was cut short when Henry becomes ill), he rushes back to rescue them. But how will he make it up there, past the police who somehow think that he may be part of that armed assault squad, and get up to the top now that the entrance doors are locked and the elevators are out of commission? Well, where there’s a Will…

…and what a Will! Johnson easily balances charm and impressive physicality in this (almost) every man role. Once more, he’s an adoring daddy who’s a perfect protector while showing that those muscles can still cuddle and coddle. But he’s a bit more vulnerable this time out thanks to his memory of the night that all his training was not enough. We can see that in Johnson’s eyes as he clicks his metal foot into position. But he can still think quickly and improvise weapons out of just about anything. Plus those dizzying heights prove to be a most formidable foe, one that those granite fists can’t overpower. Luckily he’s got a terrific partner in the radiant Ms. Campbell who makes a triumphant return to the big screen (she had been on the small screen in “House of Cards” and as sexy seatmate on a flight with Don Draper in “Mad Men”). The two have a delightfully funny, sexy banter, playfully teasing as their eyes almost glow with desire. But when things go sideways, Neve’s Sarah is no cowering victim. She swiftly switches gears to “mama grizzly” mode, shielding the kids as she dropkicks the various thugs and creeps. Get Ms. Campbell her own thriller soon! Han is a mystery as the ultra-cool tycoon who toys with Will until he finally must “come clean’ and reveal the “MacGuffin” that may topple his “Pearl”. As for the intruders, Roland Moller, last seen in ATOMIC BLONDE after his stellar lead role in LAND OF MINE, is sinister and ruthless, earning the malevolent moniker Kores Botha. There are two other stand-outs in the villain army. Noah Taylor has a most impressive, ever present sneer as Mr. Pierce and Hannah Quinlivan is a seductive leader of assassins, a pouncing tigress with blasting pistols instead of claws.

It’s surprising that this comes from writer/ director Rawson Marshall Thurber, a film maker known primarily for comedies like DODGEBALL: A TRUE UNDERDOG STORY and WE’RE THE MILLERS. Mind you, there are bits of humor to break up the tension (Will prepares to bust down a door, then finds that it’s unlocked), but the body count is very high, especially in the opening hostage stand-off. Yes, the film owes a lot to DIE HARD and THE TOWERING INFERNO, but it’s main inspiration may be the nail-biting tower-climbing sequence from MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL, which itself is a modern riff on Harold Lloyd in SAFETY LAST (google him, better yet, track down a DVD). What’s really surprising is the final scene homage to the Orson Welles iconic noir THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI. And as you’ve no doubt seen in the ads, a certain “suspension of physics” is essential to your enjoyment (much like the lack of gravity in the FAST AND THE FURIOUS flicks). I had a tougher time accepting the huge “Greek chorus” of onlookers who seem to have nothing better to do that evening than watch the convenient massive monitors that give them a prime view of Will’s every move. Sure that’s nearly as nutty as the gaudy, loopy design of that building itself (who would approve such a structure, with an actual pearl-shaped globe rested near it’s top), complete with “Pandora-like” three story garden forest and waterfall. Sure it’s silly, and makes little sense, but as far as Summertime thrill-rides go, SKYSCRAPER delivers on its promise. Rock on, “Rock”, especially with a better script.

3 Out of 5