Plot
A bouncer with a slightly murderous anger-management problem that she controls with the help of an electrode-lined vest she uses to shock herself back to normalcy whenever she gets homicidal.
Cast
Kate Beckinsale leads, Jai Courtney supports....ish, Bobby Cannavale stars, Stanley Tucci is wasted, David Bradley shines and Susan Sarandon is there as well for some unknown reason.
Verdict
Kate Beckinsale channels her inner (And outer) Charlize Theron and delivers a fast paced action movie which oozes style and offers an interesting premise. But does it deliver? No, not really.
Now let me put it out there, I don't like action flicks for the most part. I like substance and action movies rarely offer that, for me to enjoy one it needs to paint outside the lines and bring something different than the others. Gun battles, fist fights, car chases and explosions? We've seen them before, literally thousands of times. Give us something new.
Jolt provides a new concept I'll give it that, in fact I kinda liked it and Beckinsale took it and ran with it the best she could. It got my attention early and I was excited to see the direction it was going to go, alas it starts strong then staggers its way into generic Hollywood action territory and my attention was lost.
Jolt in someone else's hands could have been good, as it is sadly is a disappointing middle of the road action flick.
Rants
There's been an influx in female lead action films lately and unsurprisingly the misogyny has been rife as a result. Me, I welcome it however on the very same terms as a male lead. Namely, it needs to be believable and often they're simply not. I can't take Tom Cruise seriously as an action hero anymore than I could Paul Reubens! Alas when it comes to girls the same problem can rear its head, if they look absurd during action scenes then it flatlines the whole film. I don't care if the hero is male or female, just make me believe they're capable of the feats they're pulling off!
Breakdown
Beckinsale is on point
Great concept
Stylish
Kind of fizzles out half way through
Wastes a lot of its cast
Relies on a lot of tired tropes.
