From the jump Skyscraper hits the ground running and never stops. Initially I was worried that it would take time for the s**t to hit the fan but luckily it was not the case here and the movie is relentless in keeping the viewer engaged throughout. Skyscraper was not a perfect movie and it definitely had its cringe moments but the intense action and excellent performance from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson makes this one of the best original action movies of the year.
The story of Skyscraper is simple, When Will Sawyer’s (The Rock) family gets trapped in an enormous skyscraper while terrorist attack he stops at nothing to rescue them. Its in the simplicity of the plot where Skyscraper shines. This is not saying its all nonsense but the simplicity helps keep the focus on what matters, Will’s mission to save his family.
Will Sawyer is an extremely believable protagonist who despite being built like a wall is vulnerable, empathetic, and human. In many movies staring The Rock he is depicted as some unstoppable machine but in Skyscraper he bleeds, he gets beat up, he gets winded and loses breath, and gets roughed up a whole lot. This really helps ground this crazy story in reality, yes this ginormous skyscraper is filled with science fiction goodness but its Will Sawyers bumps and bruises that keeps things grounded.
I also have to give a shout out Neve Campbell’s Sarah Sawyer. The movie does a great job giving her what to work with so she is not just a throw away character, she holds her own and represents a strong mother very well. Its in the rest of the supporting cast that the movie falls apart a little. The villains are thinner than paper thin. For a movie that is inspired so much from films like Die Hard the villain is so throw away. Another slight hitch in Skyscraper is that for the most part the writing is pretty good but there are some really cringey moments especially from Will and Sarah’s children. They would say such ridiculous things sometimes that made me face palm, but maybe its just my nitpickiness when it comes to children actors.
Love or hate the story, most of us came for the action and oh boy does Skyscraper deliver. This movie doesn’t stop, it constantly keeps you on the edge of a seat and makes almost every moment exciting. The scope of this skyscraper is breathtaking and I constantly felt like I was looking over the edge. I was a little surprised to see that the movie had very few fight scenes but instead of traditional hand to hand combat, the movie focused on the actual building being the true adversary and obstacle for Will to conquer. It kept the stakes high resulting in some amazing heart stopping moments.
I love movies with The Rock just as much as the next guy nut I was honestly surprised by Skyscraper; I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did. It definitely has some weak elements but they are ultimately over shadowed by everything that the film does right. The Rocks grounded and excellent performance and the relentless, nail bighting action make this a true summer blockbuster