Will Sawyer an US War Veteran and former FBI Hostage Rescue Team Leader is now assessing security for skyscrapers. On his latest job out in Hong Kong everything is not as it first seems and it gets his family into a very tough situation when the incredible new building is set on fire and they are trapped inside. Sawyer must show amazing strength and determination to get inside and save them!
The Rock is doing pretty well with this action hero stint in films and he always leads them with such ease and it makes for great cinema viewing in all honesty. You know exactly what you are going to get with him in these films and he has become my greatest guilty pleasure at the moment. On the same level as Stallone and Schwarzenegger which I personally think is a huge compliment. This film has a pretty strong Die Hard link and they even paid homage to that film in one of the posters! Which was a nice touch.
I have such a soft spot for Hong Kong so having a film set in that incredible skyline and some of the shots were very impressive, I went on a work trip in 2013 that was pretty incredible. As it would not have been a place I really would have thought about prior to that, but it really was an amazing experience and I would certainly head back to the incredible place.
Anyway Will Sawyer had a pretty tough event ten years before our story in the film was taking place. We are shown that at the start when everything goes wrong on a job he was doing, in this he loses one of his legs and meets his now wife Sarah who helped keep him alive. With their two kids they are in Hong Kong to assess the security of the Pearl a brand new building. Everything is fantastic with the security and he signs it all off. But when he is stitched up by a former work colleague everything is pointed towards him when the building catches on fire. His family unexpectedly returned back to the room and are therefore trapped in the building.
Zhao Long Ji the owner and designer of the incredible building has some secrets though which have resulted in the setting fire to the building and these people attempting to get to him. Although I personally think we could have had a better storyline than that one as it was a little weak in reasons for trying to destroy the whole building. Some of the scenes with The Rock were ridiculous and therefore extremely entertaining, how he manages to get into the building was certainly one of those no way not at all moments. But that is what works and they always manage to throw a little bit wrestling into the fight scenes even after all this time. I personally think we need films like this to switch off too and enjoy on the big screen, doesn't have to be so serious all of the time!