Rating of
1.5/4
The Hex in the Title is All Too Real
Chris Kavan - wrote on 06/20/10
I wasn't expecting too much going into Jonah Hex and my expectations were pretty much met exactly.
Josh Brolin, teeth clenched and make-up firmly in place, mumbles and grunts his way through the role of Hex. Megan Fox, tightly bound in a corset, usually has a sheen of sweat and heaving cleavage front and center while she does her best as a southern drawl. Finally John Malkovich is on top of his smarmy, scene-chewing best as a confederate patriot willing to kill innocents in order to advance his agenda.
The best supporting role goes to Michael Fassbender as a nasty piece of Irish work with an unusually large and sharp knife - but like most of the supporting roles from the likes of Will Arnet, Lance Reddick and Aiden Quinn - he is only shown all-too briefly and seems like an afterthought rather than a true character.
The main problem with Hex is that it feels like it wants to be an R-rated film, but has been cut to a more appealing PG-13. Scenes come to a sudden end, powers, such as Hex's ability to talk to the dead, are woefully unexplained and for a movie where plenty of people die, there is a lack of blood. I'm not saying an R rating would have made it any better, but it certainly would have made it more clear.
As the summer of 2010 has been disappointing as a whole, Hex fits right in. Wait for the unrated DVD - maybe whatever they cut out will give this film a better shot at being complete.
