Shooter

Bob Lee Swagger may not be the new Jason Bourne, but his great luck is that he doesn't want to be. He wants to be an old-school, uncompromising hero, and he excels at it. Mark Wahlberg is excellent as a cold-blooded machine, and his sniper performances, whether in a war setting or in the quiet snow, fascinated me with every shot with their deliberate harshness. And when he makes fun of patriotic speeches, it's settled. I'm not saying that Shooter is flawless, because the villains keep repeating lines like "Swagger is still alive," even though they don't make much of an effort to catch him, but such stumbling adds a little charm to a good action film. (07/24/2007)

In the currently fashionable trend of building action on fast editing and lots of CGI effects, Shooter is a very likable old-school alternative, which does not hide its ambitions to be a stylish B-movie. In addition, its plot and narrative style, built on basic clichés, blatantly refers to the genre mannerisms of action films of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Fuqua understands that well-mastered craftsmanship can do a lot. Therefore, despite its 2-hour runtime Shooter is a very enjoyable time spent in a whirlwind of compelling action that centers around the divine Mark Wahlberg, who never lets his pissed-off expression drop and makes you think of the greatest action fighters who dominated similarly-themed films 15 years ago. And if he had sharper catchphrases, I’d give it five stars! For the genre-devoted viewer, this is the ultimate comfort food, whereas for the rest of the world, based on other reviews, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. (06/15/2007)

Leaving aside the fact that Wahlberg is like a Terminator in every shootout, none of the highly trained soldiers can hit him, he quickly aims in any direction, and after a few hard hits from his automatic weapon, the enemy lies on the ground, this is pretty solid action entertainment with excellently outlined sniper themes. Above all, I liked that long-range shooting is portrayed in a more realistic way, and the viewer can see that it's not just about having the biggest telescope and the longest rifle. It's a shame that, on the other hand, the script is filled with clichés and the aforementioned super Wahlberg, who, after the initial shot in the back, acts too badass and it's quite annoying. (05/20/2008)

A simple and straightforward action film, where the screenwriter probably got fired in the middle of the shooting and then it was just improvisation. Fortunately, Antoine Fuqua can still do it, and Mark Wahlberg is good with these badasses, so in the end, it's an inoffensive average. (04/22/2007)

The film may seem like a B-movie product in every way to most of the audience, but I always manage to enjoy it. The plot isn't innovative at all, and the film doesn’t offer much action in the end... yet the simplicity of Shooter always grabs my attention and keeps me engaged as a viewer. Mark Wahlberg is one of my favorite actors, so subjective feelings definitely play a role here; I can’t imagine Bob Lee Swagger being portrayed by anyone else. The story doesn’t come with any clever twists, and the main twist is probably predictable for most viewers. On the other hand, sometimes the most straightforward script brings the best results, and it moved along nicely while offering some punchy, juicy moments. The cast is high quality; Danny Glover fit perfectly, and Kate Mara likely opened doors to Hollywood with this film. It’s a bit of a personal favorite that I won't let go. It has its flaws, no doubt, but I always have fun and overlook the minor cosmetic issues. I give it 85%. (10/20/2019)