Stash House (2012)

The one location themed movie has really overstayed its welcome (pun intended). Move on! Or at least have something original or at least good to say or to deliver, if you want to stay. As it is, this movie has dreadful performances, a story that should have landed in the trash can and a running time, that makes this feel like a weekend of torture. And not of the good kind.And while I am used to good production values from After Dark (though they did start with Horror movies), I was also used to better acting and better overall, when it came to their movies. Production values and cinematography are good here. But just because it looks good (as do the main protagonists), doesn't mean it is good. And don't get me started on that ending ...

The action and thriller genres probably produce just as much if not more films than the horror genre going to straight to home video and are just as hit and miss. Dolph Lundgren has probably become one of the more main stay action stars who has really made a name for himself in this market have a well-received string of hits on the big screen. Over the last few years he has delivered countless movies that good or bad deliver something special thanks to his unique delivery. His latest Stash House is part of the new After Dark Action brand and looks to be something a bit different for him, but will it work? Stash House follows a young couple who have just bought their dream house through a foreclosure price that was a steal. When they discover illegal drugs packed into the walls and realize things are not what they seem and they are in a fight for survival as they must face off against two gun toting ruthless killers who will stop at nothing to get what's theirs. This movie isn't anything all that new basically being a similar story to both films titled Trespass (1992's starring Ice Cube and Ice-T as well as the recent title starring Nicolas Cage). This is a story that has been done numerous times, but not always effectively. Here they have a decent set-up with tons of dramatic and action packed build-up, but never really finds its legs to deliver what it could have been. Lundgren delivers his usual menacing performance and is great here, but is also given a couple of moments to try and show remorse, but somehow still comes off scary. His partner in crime, literally played by Jon Huertas of ABC's Castle does a good job playing up the normal and crazy moments of his character. The rest of the cast deliver decent performances and help bring the overall film together, but the big issue is just in the story. There just isn't enough here to really step this film out of the realm of average, but enough to still make it entertaining.If you are a Lundgren fan then you will want to check this film out. He is a bit more tame here than usual but still has that dominating screen presence he always delivers. There isn't near as much action here as you would think, but plays more as a thriller to keep you wondering what will happen next. In a world flooded with action films on the store shelve, Stash House plays way more like a bigger budget good film than most of the lame choices out there.

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/The-Lowedown/386583633764Here's The Lowedown on "Stash House" (A Thriller DVD review)...LIKED IT!Genre: 6 Movie: 4.5What's it about? A couple love their new house, bought for a steal out of a foreclosure. During their first visit they find illegal drugs stashed...in the walls, and they realize this is not their dream house. As they are about to leave, suddenly their exit is blocked by a gun-wielding neighbor Spector and his accomplice.What did I think? It was pretty good. You got Dolph Lundgren and Sean Faris, so don't expect an Oscar worthy performance. For what it was, it was entertaining enough to rent but not to buy. It's like going out to dinner and you come out satisfied. The food was forgettable, but you weren't hungry when you left. It's the Applebee's of thrillers. I give "Stash House" a small, bullet-sized RENT IT.

The problem with most contemporary movies is the question of credibility. Most action epics constitute theme park thrill rides with outlandish stunts that cost mega bucks not only to stage but also to enhance with CGI effects. Hollywood always tries to scale down their budgets but rarely their believability when it comes to action pictures. Venezuela-born director Eduardo Rodriguez and freshman scenarist Gary Spinelli strive for credibility in "Stash House," with Dolph Lundgren and Briana Evigan. This well-made but often nondescript melodrama weds three genres: the surveillance saga, the house pictures, and the crime thriller. Lots of movies are now depicting their narratives from the perspective of surveillance cameras, like the "Paranormal Activity" flicks. We've also had a rash of movies about haunted housed. Usually, these movies concern houses that are either inhabited by supernatural adversaries as well as the setting for evil things. Since Don Siegel's 1958 melodrama "The Line Up," Hollywood has used the plot about the innocent people who learn than drug dealers have hidden their illicit narcotics in their belongings, since as the Audrey Hepburn movie "Wait Until Dark." A young married couple lands the real estate deal of a lifetime until they realize to their horror that their sumptuous house is a hiding place for concealing heroin supplies and a prison for a California drug enforcement czar. No sooner do our cute couple discover hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of heroin than they encounter two ruthless adversaries that lay siege to their house. One of the cartel gunmen is Dolph Lungren and he isn't happy about the circumstances. "Stash House" isn't bad and the husband and wife twosome are appropriately sympathetic, while Dolph plays a murderous villain who occasionally comes to their aid. Pretty Briana Evigan of "Step Up 2 the Streets" plays a veterinarian. Despite the apparent claustrophobic setting, "Stash House" emerges as rather nimble, particularly the ending when the villainous Dolph masquerades as our heroine's father. Clearly, "Stash House" couldn't have cost too much after they paid off Dolph and Briana. The action takes place in two settings, an animal clinic and the house were the drugs are stashed. The villain thinks of a cool way to bluff himself out of the house swarming with police for a finale that is provocative. Dolph gives a good account of himself. Neither as visually flamboyant or nor as free-wheeling as Rodriguez's later shoot'em up "El Gringo," "Stash House" is better than average and doesn't wear out its welcome.