Best movie of this year hands down!

Too much of everything

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

After drug addict Maggie kills a policeman she is sentenced to death. She is 'executed' but then wakes up to be told she has a choice either she can work for the state or her execution will take place for real. Supervised by 'Bob' her training then begins; she is taught how to behave properly and how to kill. She is not an easy student but eventually passes her final test. Finally she is allowed to leave the training facility and is told to move to Venice Beach and wait further instructions. Time passes and she gets in a relationship with a local man before finally being given her first job. Shortly afterwards 'Uncle Bob' turns up and gives his 'niece' two tickets to New Orleans for Mardi Gras… of course it turns out to be another job. By now Maggie has become more human, the job bothers her on a moral level and she doesn't want her boyfriend caught up in it; Bob tells her that there is no way out of her job. Inevitably she gets given another task… this time things don't go according to plan.When I first watched this in the cinema I really enjoyed this… at the time I hadn't seen 'Nikita'. Having seen both it is clear that this is more than 'based on' it is a very close remake; a few details are changed but not many. While I think the original is the superior film this is still pretty solid and I'll try to review it on its own merits. The story is solid and the main characters are believable despite the unlikely situation. Bridget Fonda does an impressive job as Maggie making her sympathetic despite the way she starts out. She is ably supported by Gabriel Byrne as 'Bob'; Anne Bancroft, as Amanda her etiquette coach; Dermot Mulroney as boyfriend JP and Miguel Ferrer as Bob's boss, who is not a fan of Maggie. There is also an impressively sinister turn from Harvey Keitel as Victor the Cleaner. The action is impressive with shootings, some martial arts and other fights. While there are a few disturbing moments, there is nothing too bad. Overall this is a solid action thriller and while I'd recommend watching 'Nikita' this is worth watching if you don't like subtitles, like any of the main actors involved or just want to compare the films.

The first half of "Point of No Return" is the promise of a hard-hitting action movie that never quite delivers. It's a great premise - street-roaming loser being plucked into assassin training by the U.S. government - they gloss over the honing of her skills in favor of dwelling on her resistance to the program. Then there's the screen time devoted to her adjusting to a normal life, which means this movie tends to drag in places. The upside to this are the Anne Bancroft scenes, but she's just in charge of etiquette. There's no real tension until the New Orleans sniper hit, and that's seventy minutes into the movie. In its defense, between that last job and the arrival of The Cleaner, the movie does pick up from there. It's just a mild slog to get to that point.Credit where it's due, Bridget Fonda is well-suited to the role. She's got the physicality and the acting skills to pull off Nina's anxiety. She's a credible assassin, too. I mean, if I saw her in a restaurant, I'd find somewhere else to eat. But to be honest, I was walking into this hoping for more violent payoff.5/10

As a general rule of thumb, most action films can be improved if the lead character is female - the more vulnerable, the better. There are literally dozens of films a year where some beefcake gets to blow sets up and shoot hundreds of faceless extras but girls-with-guns films are a bit less common. When Luc Besson was invited to America to remake his smash hit "Nikita", he stepped out of the directors chair and handed the reins to John Badham but personally, I'd have liked to have seen Besson in control. As an adaptation, it sticks fairly closely to the original so if you've seen that then this probably won't float your boat. But if not, what "The Assassin" (or "Point Of No Return" for US readers) remains is a faintly plodding thriller with hints of tortured romance and explosive action bubbling beneath the surface.Street-kid Maggie (Bridge Fonda) is involved in a violent robbery that goes horribly wrong whilst high on drugs. Imprisoned and sentenced to death after she kills a policeman, Maggie wakes up after her apparent execution in the care of the enigmatic Bob (Gabriel Byrne) who offers her a second chance. Training to become a hit-man under Bob's tutelage, Maggie's feminine side is brought out by fellow recruit Amanda (Anne Bancroft) and soon, she's released into the world with a new identity and a codename to be called when her skills are required. But away from the bloodshed, she falls for photographer JP (Dermot Mulroney) and soon, she must be forced to choose which of her two new lives must end.However you know the film, "Point Of No Return" is a cold-fish of a thriller has plenty to recommend but remains a bit of a cold fish. It doesn't involve you very much as though it wants to keep you at a safe distance. A pity because Fonda delivers during a rare lead part for her - her turn from spunky street urchin to refined, urbane killer is believable although it does feel a bit rushed in terms of screen time. I felt that there was too much story for the film and what was there was a little slow, never more so than when Maggie is out in the real world. In order to spice things up a bit, we're treated to a few thoroughly good action sequences with improbably big guns which are typically Besson - everything explodes and all guns sound like .44 Magnums. Byrne and Mulroney are pretty substandard but Harvey Keitel delivers a brief but brilliant performance as Victor the Cleaner while it's good to see Bancroft still producing the goods.I have yet to see "Nikita" but it is on my To Do list, primarily because of this movie. It's a decent enough action thriller, making the most of its ludicrous premise (why did Bob pick Maggie, out of all the condemned prisoners?). But I couldn't help but wonder how different it would have been with Besson directing - probably would have breathed some life into the material instead of the impassive movie that was on my screen. It was trying too hard to be cool which, those of you who know, means that you are no longer cool if you have to try. Despite the action and Nina Simone soundtrack which is something I definitely approve of, "Point Of No Return" is an average film at best but with slight hints that it could have been better. It's not a blast-a-minute action movie, nor is it a gripping thriller. It's as middle-of-the-road as a zebra crossing and lacking the kinetic energy it deserved.

"Point Of No Return" (1993) starring Bridget Fonda is a USA copy-cat version of a famous French language classic, "La Femme Nikita" (1990) starring Anne Parilaud."Point Of No Return" (1993) is a movie expensively done, but a failure due to......lack of talent in writing, casting, and direction.Little, skinny, physically uncoordinated Bridget Fonda is no Anne Parilaud, could never make it as a clothes or photo model, has an infectious toothy smile and connections to a famous Hollywood actor family.....and that's not enough for a movie where the main character must be physically fit, coordinated, and a pleasure to watch at all times doing all things.Parilaud was all those in "La Femme Nikita" (1990), Fonda is none of those things in "Point Of No Return" (1993).Francis Coppola noticed that movie star Harvey Keitel didn't look good on the screen during rushes of "Apocolypse Now" (1979), and fired Keitel after one week's shooting and replaced him with Martin Sheen (who had heart attack at age 36 on the set of the movie, but lived anyway, and is still alive as of 2013)Nobody noticed, it appears, that Bridget Fonda was just not the right girl for the Anne Parilaud role in "Point Of No Return" (1993), and Bridget didn't get fired.....and the results are available now and forever for all to see and groan about.It is astonishing the rich USA movie makers could have blown the chance to make at least a passable re-make of the French movie.......all they had to do was look at the masterpiece (titled "La Femme Nikita" 1990 starring French fashion model/ actress Anne Parilaud.....absolutely brilliant actress in all ways).The copy-cat version was made in 1993 in the USA and titled "Point Of No Return" stars Peter Fonda's daughter (Henry Fonda's granddaughter! Jane Fonda's niece!) Bridget Fonda as the star.....female "secret agent" govt. "licensed to kill" type.The USA copy-cat movie is almost a shot-for-shot copy of the 1990 French movie until the final sequence, which is re-written to match the USA setting.It's all so baaaaaaaaaaad.....there is no way to say how bad it is.......However, for people who already saw "La Femme Nikita" (1990 France) on which "Point Of No Return" (1993) is based, there is educational value in having seen the otherwise totally valueless USA movie..... the whole USA disaster copy cat attempt is an example in spades of the fact that big, big Hollywood money can't and doesn't buy talent.........and no-talent types in high places get hold (at least sometimes) of big money movie projects, and blow it big time.Money can't buy happiness, and it ALSO can't buy good moving making results, even when the recipe for how to do it is provided step by step and the final ideal results are shown to the wanna-be chefs (i.e. movie producers, directors, writers, actors, etc. etc.).Money and talent are not the same thing, much as Hollywood establishment types often deny that. "Point Of No Return" (1993) is proof.Many books have been written about bad movies of fame made in Hollywood..."Heaven's Gate" is the poster movie for "classic bad movies" always at the top of the lists provided. The reasons movies were bad was....they didn't make (enough) money for the movie makers and investors. How tragic!But bad art ("Point Of No Return" 1993 is an example) is never cited......Well, it should be, and movies like "Point Of No Return" (1993) should be included in the "Hollywood Hall Of Shame" lists of all time bad movies.Comparing the two movies ("La Femme Nikita" 1990 French, starring Anne Parilaud and "Point Of No Return" 1993 USA, starring Bridget Fonda) is a valuable exercise in movie education."Nikita" is soooooooooooooo good, and "Point Of No Return" is sooooooooooooooo bad............Too painful to describe why, but screening both movies back to back is.....educational, to say the least!