This movie feels a lot more natural than you’d think considering the script. The unfolding, the script and general approach of the film is very ‘B Grade style’ but is delivered in an ‘A Grade’ manner. Go Falcon! This movie definitely belongs in Michael Jai White’s ‘Top Hits’ List! Naturally he finds out his enemy is rather powerful and dangerous – so naturally things start blowing up and we see bullets fly, kicks thrown and lots of wrists and arms broken. But Cindy winds up almost dead form an attack and Falcon heads over to see what happened.Īfter the obvious conclusion that she was the victim of attempted murder, Falcon starts asking questions and working with the police (and eventually on his own) to find the killer. They catch up, poke a bit of fun at each other over their lives and show a certain level of sibling appreciation before Cindy heads back to Brazil to pursue her passion of helping people. Obviously unhappy, Falcon’s sister Cindy arrives home from overseas and the two conveniently explain their past and current situation through an argument (ahh the art of filmmaking!). But his ordinary ‘people name’ is John Chapman.įalcon is suffering from some kind of post traumatic stress and seems to love hanging around sleeping on his sister’s couch playing a form of Russian roulette to pass his time. Parazi’s screenplay gifts the deadpan McDonough with the best lines, such as when, upon being reunited with Chapman, Manny ironically observes, “I see you’ve stopped working out.” Among the supporting players, Japanese star Masashi Odate ( The Last Samurai) makes a strong impression as the sort of villain who tests the sharpness of his sword by slicing open the stomach of his nearest underling.Michael Jai White is a guy nicknamed ‘Falcon’, it’s his old codename from a vaguely touched on military career from years before the events of this film. Although he indulges in the typical frenetic cutting endemic to current action movies, director Ernie Barbarash films the fight scenes cleanly enough to maintain physical coherence, showcasing his star’s dazzling physical movements with the proper slavish devotion. When his sister Cindy ( Laila Ali, Muhammad Ali’s daughter, here not given any opportunity to show off her own pugilistic skills) is brutally beaten while working as a social worker in the favelas of Brazil, our hero rushes to Rio de Janeiro-cue the obligatory aerial shot of the Christ the Redeemer statue-to track down the bad guys who did it.Īided by local street cop Katarina ( Millie Ruperto) and a former military buddy, Manny, ( Neal McDonough) now working for the State Department, Chapman quickly cuts a wide swath through a variety of hoodlums, crooked cops and even the Japanese Yakuza, uncovering a sex-trafficking ring in the process and occasionally resorting to shooting down his opponents as if he was playing a violent video game.īut the rudimentary plot is merely an excuse for the incredibly buffed and muscled White to display the impressive fighting prowess that has netted him 26 martial arts titles. Happening on a robbery in a liquor store, as is the all too frequent occurrence in these sorts of vehicles, he taunts one of the thugs by grabbing his shotgun and putting it in his mouth before quickly dispatching him. White’s character, John “Falcon” Chapman, is the latest in a long line of emotionally scarred action heroes, in this case an ex-Marine suffering from frequent PTSD flashbacks who in the film’s opening minutes plays a game of Russian Roulette (with bullets soaked in a shot glass filled with whiskey, no less). Set in the Brazilian slums that inspired its original title Favela, Falcon Rising is a by-the-numbers thriller that mainly serves as a showcase for its star’s considerable fighting abilities, showcased in an endless number of kick-ass set pieces. Michael Jai White ( Spawn, The Dark Knight) makes another bid for action movie stardom with this film so determined to spawn a franchise that its ending sets up a sequel, with distributor Freestyle Releasing already promising two more installments.
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