"GUNS"
DVD Review
by Kevin Carr
| MOVIE: **1/2 (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: * (out of 5 stars) STARRING Elisha Cuthbert as FRANCIS DETT Lyriq Bent as FORD SAUNDERS Colm Feore as PAUL DUGUID Shawn Doyle as RICK MERRIWEATHER Alan Van Sprang as JOHN WILLISON Al Sapienza as POLICE CHIEF TONY FABRISI Rated R Studio: Phase 4 Films Directed by: David Sutherland Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
This Canadian miniseries examines the impact of handguns on the streets of the country’s cities and how the Canadian government is working to curtail the violence. Told as an amalgam of different stories, “Guns” follows an investigation of Paul Duguid (Colm Feore), a gun collector and enthusiast who also deals illegal firearms to warring nations as well as thugs on the streets. His son Bobby (Gregory Smith) is learning the trade and ropes his girlfriend Francis (Elisha Cuthbert) into helping him smuggle guns from Ohio to Toronto. Meanwhile, two police detectives try to uncover the link between an accidental shooting of a six year old girl and Duguid’s gun trade ring.
WHAT I LIKED
In spite of its many faults, “Guns” manages to weave a story together among many different characters without feeling like a cheap rip-off of Steven Soderberg’s “Traffic” or the Oscar-winning “Crash.” It’s not as innovative as “Traffic,” but it manages to juggle the stories enough to keep them interesting at least slightly believable. It’s not nearly as preachy as “Crash,” although it is very clear that the filmmakers hold an anti-gun stance.
Part of what makes the drama work in this movie is the cast. Sure, Elisha Cuthbert is fetching and fun to watch, but she also does a decent job in the acting department, showing a more realistically dramatic side to her beyond what you’ve seen in “24.” Still, there’s a bit of a bait-and-switch to get you to root for her simply because she’s so pretty, forgetting the fact that she’s dating a thug and is really just a wretched person.
Colm Feore, another future “24” star, brings the highest level of acting quality to the movie, bolstering up the otherwise flat and amateurish acting of the supporting cast (and a few of the leads).
“Guns,” while very obviously politically motivated, is competently put together and addresses the gun problem few realize exists north of the U.S. border.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
When I was in grade school, my family visited Toronto, and all I remember hearing about the city was how safe it was from the urban violence that plagues U.S. metro centers. “Guns” does its best to blow apart that stereotype, showing the thug lifestyle and gang warfare is not a problem exclusive to America.
However, it does tend to shamelessly blame America for the problem of urban violence, painting the U.S. as the troubled big brother that is corrupting Canada. For instance, the guns involved in the violence are either duly registered handguns stolen from Canadian citizens, Army surplus purchased from the U.S. military or pieces obtained at a mythical Dayton gun show.
Like a John Grisham story which approaches issues with an inarguable stance that only one side is right, “Guns” forgets the cliched but utterly true statement that guns don’t kill people but rather the people holding the guns kill people. Having known plenty of gun enthusiasts in my life, and speaking as a gun owner myself, this film vilifies the law-abiding citizens for gun ownership rather than pointing the finger of blame to the murderers and thugs out there doing the crime. After all, do we blame the Dodge Durango when the driver runs over a pedestrian?
DVD FEATURES
As “Guns” is a two-part miniseries with a three-hour running time, there’s no special features on the disc.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
People in the anti-gun camp and anyone who wants to watch a depiction of Canadian cities in a very un-Michael Moore sort of way.
