Apex

This is a potentially interesting premise that gets drowned by bloody violence and endless action movie clichés. In this "humans hunt human" story set in the not-too-distant future, Apex tries to make some kind of social commentary on the decadence, delusion, and sociopathic selfishness of the ultra-rich, but all of this gets lost in scenes of stabbings to the forehead, spurting blood, and action movie characters we've all seen in one form or another, to say nothing of a clunky and uneven storyline. As "the hunted," Bruce Willis seems bored with it all, and who can blame him? It's a wasted opportunity to follow in the tradition of sci-fi that makes commentary on our world, instead opting to follow the played-out action movie formula seen time and time again.

Even the message eventually comes across as uninspired. There's a golden opportunity as Willis confronts the lead villain (played by Neil McDonough), who spouts a bunch of gibberish about the thrill of the hunt and how he's an apex predator during the hunt and in the boardroom and so on. At best, he comes across as a self-absorbed teenager going through an unfortunate Ayn Rand phase, at worst, a malignant narcissistic sociopath who would destroy the world and everyone in it if it meant protecting his egocentric delusions. Willis' character scoffs in response, and the best he or the writers can come up with is for him to call McDonough's character an "idiot." While no one expects or necessarily wants pithy bons mots or preachy speeches in response, it feels lazy and as much of a lost opportunity as anything else about this movie.