If you leave your brain in neutral, you should have a fairly enjoyable ride.
12 Rounds (2009)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:64
Fresh:18
Rotten:46
Average Rating:4.4/10
Consensus: Energetic but empty, 12 Rounds' preposterous plot hurtles along at a rapid pace, but can’t disguise the derivative script.
Australian Theatrical Release:
Mar 19, 2009 Wide
US Box Office: $12,220,258
Synopsis: Finnish director Renny Harlin (CLIFFHANGER, DIE HARD 2) brings first-time screenwriter Daniel Kunka’s story to life in the fast-paced action film 12 ROUNDS. When New Orleans police officer Danny... Finnish director Renny Harlin (CLIFFHANGER, DIE HARD 2) brings first-time screenwriter Daniel Kunka’s story to life in the fast-paced action film 12 ROUNDS. When New Orleans police officer Danny Fisher (WWE wrestler John Cena) apprehends Miles Jackson (Aidan Gillen, THE WIRE), a villainous Irishman being pursued by the FBI, Jackson’s girlfriend is accidentally killed. One year later, Jackson is out of prison and seeking revenge, kidnapping Fisher's girlfriend, Molly (Ashley Scott), and setting up an elaborate game of cat and mouse that traverses the city. Now a detective, Fisher, with the help of the FBI and his fellow officers, has to survive 12 rounds of Jackson’s game--each more mentally and physically challenging than the last--if he wants to see Molly alive again. Meanwhile, the roguish Jackson may be seeking more than just retribution. Although the premise is completely implausible, 12 ROUNDS is a fun thrill ride. Jackson’s plan and Fisher’s ensuing pursuit leave an unimaginable trail of destruction throughout the city, managing to encompass fire engines, buses, a streetcar, and a helicopter, along with fires, explosions, and blackouts, among other things. There isn’t a dull moment as Fisher and the FBI agents, played by Steve Harris and Gonzalo Menendez, try to outwit the seemingly omnipotent villain. Cena, resembling a super-sized Mark Wahlberg, fits the bill for an action hero. Gillen is a solid nemesis: heartless, stone-faced, and completely out for himself. Brian White plays Hank, Fisher’s partner and best friend, and Scott is appealing as Fisher’s feisty girlfriend. [More]
Starring: John Cena, Aidan Gillen, Ashley Scott, Steve Harris
Starring: John Cena, Aidan Gillen, Ashley Scott, Steve Harris, Brian White, Taylor Cole, Gonzalo Menendez, Kyle Clements, Peter Navy Tuiasosopo, Travis Davis, Nick Gomez
Director: Renny Harlin
Director: Renny Harlin
Screenwriter: Daniel Kunka
Producer: Mark Gordon, Josh McLaughlin, Michael Lake
Composer: Trevor Rabin
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Reviews for 12 Rounds
This big-budget action thriller excels at dishing out a plot that's a bit like a chess game on speed.
Heavy on stunts but light on plausibility, humor, surprise, visual ingenuity or psychological depth.
Awfully forgettable, but Harlin makes things go boom again, with ruthless efficiency that puts the flick just over the hump of the straight-to-cable Jeff Speakman school. [Blu-ray]
With all the nuance of a fist to the groin, ... (it's) the kind of forgettable film that isn't impossible to enjoy but that only a Cena fan could truly love.
A very satisfying and well made action thriller that could only be improved if Arnold Schwarzenegger was the star.
With its wonderful post-Katrina NOLA setting and the standard stunt spectacle as only Harlin can deliver, 12 Rounds is actually quite good. It's no masterpiece, but then again, few post-millennial adrenaline rushes have been.
Apart from the palpably improbable storyline, Harlan shows a massive disregard for characterisation, and so much bang-bang editing that you scarcely know where you are.
Cena has the sort of likeable air that suggests he could just make it as an action movie type. However, it won't be thanks to this movie.
This is a welcome throwback for audiences raised on ’90s action flicks — what they used to call “a pulse-pounding roller-coaster thrill-ride of a movie”.
There’s a decent little action movie somewhere inside ‘12 Rounds’: a bit more complexity of character, a few more jokes and a hero who doesn’t look like a two-by-four with a buzz cut might have gone a long way.
While 12 Rounds is well above average for an action movie, it's important not to get too carried away. This is, after all, a picture in which leading lady Ashley Scott is less appealing than her pet pug.
A lunk-headed, brawling action movie with more muscle than brains and the kind of editing that feels like being repeatedly shot in the eyes with a staple gun.
One long blur of car stunts and digital clocks counting down to detonation — passable for lazy television viewing, but not worth the price of a ticket.
It remains to be seen whether this crude, dumbly entertaining outing will encourage the director to tackle more of the Greek myths.
12 Rounds's familiarity undercuts any kind of suspense it hopes to build, and for an action-packed romp it's incredibly dull.
Those in the mood for something kinda dumb but lotsa fun look no further.
The kind of passable in-flight entertainment you could watch half-asleep.
Latest News for 12 Rounds
May 31, 2009:
Five Favourite Films with Renny Harlin
Finnish director Renny Harlin has one of the most schizophrenic CVs in movie-dom. He's directed some of the most beloved action films of the last 20 years, including Die Hard 2,... More...
March 30, 2009:
12 Rounds Star Wants Jericho Film Trilogy ![]()
In a recent interview, 12 Rounds actress Ashley Scott chimes in on rumored plans to bring the cancelled CBS sci-fi show Jericho to the big screen. In short, she's in -- how's a... More...
March 26, 2009:
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This week at the movies, we've got a war of the worlds (Monsters vs. Aliens, with voice work by Reese Witherspoon and Seth Rogan), a demonic abode (The Haunting in Connecticut,... More...
March 26, 2009:
Box Office Guru Preview: Monsters vs. Aliens Ready For Mighty Attack
Ginormica and her mutant pals look to seize control of the North American box office with the animated 3D adventure Monsters vs. Aliens which will try to overtake a group of... More...
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