Man Down: Movie Review

It wasn’t until the last few minutes of “Man Down” that I really had any clue on what kind of story writer Adam G. Simon and director Dito Montiel were trying to tell.  A very solid cast that includes Shia LaBeouf, Jai Courtney, Gary Oldman, Clifton Collins Jr, and Kate Mara are lined up for this modern day war tale but the film is fragmented into three different timelines and I found myself fixating on how they were all connected.

“Man Down” opens with U.S. Marine’s Gabriel Drummer (LaBeouf) and his lifelong friend/adopted brother Devin Roberts (Courtney), walking through the post-apocalyptic wastelands of their hometown. They are on the search for Gabriel’s wife Natalie (Mara) and his son Jonathan.  We then are taken some time back and see Gabriel being interviewed by military counselor Peyton (Oldman).  He wants to talk about a specific incident that involved a mission, but Gabriel clearly has a hard time talking about it.  We are then brought back even further so we can spend time with Gabriel and his family as well as Gabriel’s Marine training.

The scenes that focus on Gabriel with his wife and son, as well as his time in the Marines are actually quite solid and LaBeouf gives one of his best performances to date here.  It is when we are taken to the post-apocalyptic America where things are thrown out of whack.  It all makes sense during the climax, but many might find it a struggle to hang in there for it.  I know I did.  Montiel and Simon clearly tried to deliver something original and grand, but the end result just wasn’t able to live up to their ambitious idea.

By: Marc Ferman