THE MARKSMAN

 

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to Bluray, DVD and Digital from director Robert Lorenz and Universal Pictures Home Entertainment is the tale of THE MARKSMAN.

Jim (Liam Neeson) is a rancher who lives on the Arizona/Mexico border raising cattle. The land has been rough, and he is still reeling from the death of his wife. Keeping an eye on Jim is Sarah (Katheryn Winnick) who sees how everything is affecting him. She also is a border agent and Jim calls when he sees immigrant cross the fence or finds someone in trouble.

In Mexico lives young man Miguel (Jacob Perez) who lives with Mom Rosa (Teresa Ruiz). They receive a telephone call from an uncle telling them to run as far away as possible. It seems the cartel is not happy and want to make an example of the family. Thinking they were going to make it; Miguel and Rosa are spotted by the cartel led by Mauricio (Juan Pablo Raba).

Managing to get across the border, that is not going to stop Mauricio and Jim finds himself involved in a shootout. Rosa convinces Jim to help them get to family in Chicago and after seeing what Mauricio is capable of, he agrees. The one who is the least happy about the situation is Sarah, especially after she discovers how vicious Mauricio is.

There is no time to think, and Jim knows he must stay one step ahead of the cartel if they are all going to make it out alive.

Neeson as Jim once again puts in the performance of a man who does not take anything from anybody. He makes it plain from the get-go that Mauricio does not scare him in the slightest. Knowing his way around weapons is what is keeping them alive. So, Neeson gives us his certain set of skills once again to protect a young angry boy. What I love about these roles is that he certainly takes his fair share of punches as one would expect which gives his characters realism in a sense. Calm, cool, collected and having a plan is the way Jim plays it.

Perez as Miguel is an angry young man that just wants to go home, except home is not where he left it. Not knowing how to trust Jim, I think the dog Jackson breaks the ice. Miguel seems a capable young man and proves it when his protector takes to drink. Perez is a young actor who plays his role with believability and smarts.

Raba as Mauricio is one cold hearted individual and that is what makes getting away imperative. This character has no problem it seems taking out one person after another, even if they give him what he wants. Creepy and scary at the same time and Raba gives us the look of a man on a mission who will never stop – ever.

Winnick as Sarah has a history with Jim and wants him to stay safe. Knowing that he tries to do the right thing, she wants him safe and the farther away he gets, the less she can keep him that way. Its good to see Winnick on screen again even though she will always be Lagatha to me!

Other cast include: Alfredo Quiroz as Carlos, Sean Rosales as Hernando, Jose Vasquez as Isidro, Antonio Leyba as Rigo, Dylan Kenin as Randall and Luce Rains as Everett.

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment has just added an amazing film to their library and making it available for us to all experience and re-experience in our own home theaters. There are films of every genre available from scary to drama to family films. For more of what they have to offer please visit www.uphe.com.

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The Bonus Features of THE MARKSMAN include The Making of THE MARKSMAN.

Let us be honest with one another, anything that has Liam Neeson in it I am going to watch and love. In recent years he has truly brought some memorable roles to the screen and shown Hollywood that stellar performances can come at any time in one’s life.

His choice in roles has one thing that stands out, the person he is portraying is just trying to be a good person and live within the world of his own making. It is only when someone comes along and tries to mess with that does Neeson’s characters shrug and say, “okay…if you want to play, lets play”.

It is weird to say but when that happens, I find myself shrugging my own shoulders saying out loud to the screen, ‘dude, you asked for it’. A line is drawn and, in THE MARKSMAN, that line was clear, especially when dealing with crazy.

In the end – justice comes down to him!

SIX is Inspired by Real Missions

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to Bluray from creators William and Dave Broyles, the History Channel and 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is the riveting and startling look at those who put their lives on the line and are only known as SIX.

Richard 'Rip' Taggart (Walton Coggins) is a former Navy Seal who now works as a security contractor in Nigeria. Sent to help protect an all girl’s school, he, a school teacher Na’omi (Nondumiso Tembe), Esther (Tyla Harris) and other girls are swiftly kidnapped by the terrorist Boko Haram. The terrorist learn quickly that they have a former Navy SEAL among their captives and are going to use Taggart to get what they want.

When his former SEAL Team Six members become aware that Taggart has been taken, it brings up an incident that happened in Afghanistan and they know that someone else besides Boko Haram want their former SEAL. 

Each of the former SEAL's have family issues they are contending with, Joe 'Bear' Graves (Barry Sloane) is trying to start a family, Ricky 'Buddha' Ortiz (Juan Pablo Raba) comes home to a family that seems to be holding a grudge toward the absentee husband-dad and Alex Caulder (Kyle Schmid) is on his way to trouble. Armin "Fishbait" Khan (Jaylen Moore) is a new comer to the group who fits right in.

Trying to put family's right and working a plan to get Taggart back is taking a strain on all the men. Especially since they have a secret that is going to be a problem when a man named Michael (Dominic Adams) who plots with leader Al-Muttaqi (Jarreth J. Merz) wants Taggart and will do anything to get him.

Putting their plan of rescue into action, the team takes on the compound of Boko Haram only to find Taggart and the girl are gone. Making use of the Muttaqi media connections, Taggart is forced to admit what happened in 1984. The team is in a tailspin and turn their attention toward Michael discovering a jihad training camp in Chad. Believing he finally has revenge against Taggart, it seems to backfire for Michael in a way he could not have imagined. 

Coggins as Taggart is certainly playing a role I have not seen from him before. Gone is the swagger, the southern drawl and the costuming giving the character of Taggart a stripped down man who can no longer hide from himself or the secret a whole team is holding on to. Beginning as a hardened soldier, episode by episode it is all stripped away and I was riveted to watch it all happen.

Sloane as Bear is a torn man who knows what the job he signed up for entails yet wants to make his wife happy by starting a family. Going after Taggart brings back unresolved issues that stop him from making decisions that require a quickness to save lives. Raba as Buddha has been leaving home so often his wife has taken on a life of her own and the kids are in hello/goodbye mode. Realizing his family life is passing him by, he wants to take care of his family but at what cost?

Schmidt as Caulder seems to be the wild card of the bunch. Living a bohemian life he is surprised when his daughter Dharma (Lindsley Register) shows up on his doorstep calling out his past behaviors and future for their father/daughter relationship. Moore as Fishbait wants to help find Taggart and knows that he is going to have to call upon unlikely sources to plan a rescue.

Adams as Michael clearly has an issue with Taggart and will go against anyone that tries to stop him. Making a deal with Boko Haram also puts the girls and their teacher in more jeopardy with recruitment tactics. Merz as Muttaqi is equally as devious as Michael but also knows that Taggart has become a distraction.

Tembe as Na’omi is a teacher who will do anything to save her girls from the torturous treatment that happens to young girls by the Boko Haram. I loved her performance and she should be applauded for her amazing role. Harris as Esther is so beautiful in this role as a young girl who is willing to trust a man who most think untrustworthy. She believes when most probably wouldn’t and it doesn’t go unnoticed by Taggart.

Other cast include Rus Blackwell as Commander Atkins, Donny Boaz as Buckley, Niyi Oni as Quayum, Lee Spencer as Terry, Matt Burke as Nick, Angela Relucio as Lt. Fung, Tyler Chase as Kashif, Arnold Chanakira as Hakeem, Brianne Davis as Lena Graves, Tyla Harris as Esther, Zeeko Zaki as Akmal Barayev, and Nadine Velazquez as Jackie Ortiz.

Lionsgate is a global leader in motion picture production and distribution for theatres, television, home entertainment and more. Theatre franchises include THE HUNGER GAMES, and DIVERGENT along with JOHN WICK. Now, adding this film to it’s 16,000 motion picture and television titles you can see everything coming soon as well as available now at http://www.lionsgate.com.

SIX is an intense, realistic, and scary look at what it takes to protect those who need it the most, be part of a group that jump at a moments notice when needed for special operations and attempt to maintain a home life. Creators William and David Broyles have brought an authenticity to these characters because it doesn’t hide behind anything but instead bring all possibilities front and center in full view.

From the Boko Haram to terrorist recruiting, the creators use what most Americans know about and delve deeper into how these issues threaten lives. There is a real sense of fear from both of these groups and what they are capable of is an important message for us all.

This ensemble cast is absolutely amazing bringing every aspect to the story telling that kept me watching more and more. The best part of owning the Bluray is not having to wait till the next week to find out what happens next. I absolutely marathon-watched SIX and will do it again with no problem.

There is so much that I’m not speaking about because this is an experience and I’m not about to give anything away and trust me – there is plenty! The Bluray includes all 8 episodes on two discs with almost six hours of story telling. The set also includes Digital HD that can be instantly streamed and downloaded to your television, computer, tablet and smartphone.

Inspired by real missions, the creators bring an authenticity to the world of America’s SEAL elite special operations unit! This is a look at what they do, their personal lives, what happens in combat with the life and death situations they face so they can come home to their families again.

In the end – never leave a brother behind!