Final starrer showcases Paul Walker’s acting mettle

WALKER. Graceful evocation of spousal grief and fatherly devotion.

Paul Walker died in a car accident last Saturday after attending a charity fundraiser for victims of natural disasters, like Typhoon “Yolanda.” It was tragic to lose him just before the release of Eric Heisserer’s “Hours”—about a desperate father’s struggle to keep his ventilator-reliant, newborn daughter alive in the midst of Hurricane Katrina.

While flawed and frustratingly tedious, the dramatic thriller puts the 40-year-old actor’s heretofore untapped dramatic chops to good use.

It begins with Nolan Hayes (Walker) losing his wife, Abby, after she delivers their premature baby.

With the raging storm expected to hit sooner than later, everyone in the hospital is forced to evacuate—but, the grieving widower is left with no choice but to stay with his baby, who can’t immediately be rescued, because her ventilator is simply too heavy to lug around!

When the electricity goes out, Nolan has to manually recharge the ventilator’s defective battery every three minutes to keep his daughter breathing!

But, time, food and medical supplies are running out fast! Worse, as flood waters continue to rise, he soon finds himself in grave danger when gun-toting thieves and guiltless looters show up at the hospital! What to do?

From the get-go, the movie requires a sense of urgency and claustrophobia that Heisserer could have used to keep his film consistently viewable, eventful and tension-filled. Walker keeps his emotions real—from the enervating effect of Abby’s passing to heart-warming moments with his frail child—but, even his best efforts aren’t enough to shake off the tedium that makes viewers fidget in their seats.

Walker turns in a deceptively simple portrayal, boosted by his graceful evocation of spousal grief and fatherly devotion. True, it’s easy to imagine what a more seasoned actor could have done with the difficult role—but, to demand only histrionic ululations of grief reflects a limited grasp of the scope and depth of human emotions.

After all, the sight of a silently weeping man can sometimes be more moving than someone who howls his grief for all the world to see and hear! Who’s to say that one is more appropriate than the other?

Unfortunately, while the film is an acting showcase for its lead star, it’s a missed opportunity for its debuting director—win some, lose some.

—Rest in peace, Paul Walker.

‘Machete Kills’

What do Lady Gaga, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Antonio Banderas have in common? They share the role of the shape-shifting hitman, El Camaleon, in Robert Rodriguez’s polarizing (and unapologetically campy) actioner, “Machete Kills.”

The film follows the adventures of ex-federale Machete Cortez (Danny Trejo) after he is recruited by US President Rathcock (Charlie Sheen, billed as Carlos Estevez) to stop visionary inventor Luther Voz (Mel Gibson) and Marcos Mendez (Demian Bichir), a Mexican revolutionary with a split personality, from blowing the world to smithereens and replacing it with a utopian world in outer space!

The star-studded production is a merry mix of madness, mayhem, idiosyncratic performances, cool gadgets and shockingly disposable characters who shift allegiances in a snap! Joining the lead stars are Michelle Rodriguez, Sofia Vergara, Vanessa Hudgens and Jessica Alba, who ham it up—with tongues firmly in cheek!

There’s a lot of loopy fun to be had, that’s for sure—but, if you think there’s more to “Machete Kills” than its circuitous depiction of Good versus Evil—tough luck, that’s all there is!