Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * *

Cast: Nicholas Cage, Famke Janssen, Kevin Durrand, Jeremy Nazario, LaMonica Garrett, Michael Imperioli, Isaac Santiago, Braulio Castillo Hijo, Tommy Walker, Sewell Whitney, Leon Andrew Joseph, Sebastian Vasquez, John Lewis, Rey Hernandez, Drake Shannon, Jaime Irizarry, Daniel Salinas Gonzalez, Pablo Tufino, Lunarena Del Fresno, Brian Tester, Juan C. Defendini.

There are stories that are continuously being retold, the same destination in sight, just a small tweak to the journey to keep it fresh, ongoing, constantly endless; it is not even a case of the Emperor’s new clothes, just the same ill-fitting apparel re-stitched, rehashed and washed in yesterday’s water. This sense of unremitting dialogue is not the fault of the artist, but can be laid out at the feet of the studio bosses who refuse to look beyond the repeated formula, and in some small way, at the hearts of some of the public who find their love for the incessantly unstoppable is enough to keep them entertained, refusing to be pushed into a whole new arena of dynamic story-telling.

In all of this, Primal comes forth and sets down its large, heavy, even cumbersome paws, on the cinematic demands of the watcher’s instincts and for the most part becomes a film which labours under the oft-told tale of the off the reins and out of control former American Government backed soldier/mercenary/assassin who needs to be captured and brought to task, but who soon finds ways to ensure his freedom at the cost of more lives.

The fly in this particular ointment is Nicholas Cage who brings all his talent to the film and raises the interest with his performance as animal hunter Frank Walsh, and in doing so allows the film to be viewed as a finer piece than it probably deserves. The secret of the part seems to allow Mr. Cage to down- play his character, that whilst he is seen as the lead role in the film, he allows others around him, including Kevin Durand as Richard Loffler to take centre stage. Whilst this may work in allowing the force of nature that has been in evident in films such as Ghost Rider, Snake Eyes and Kick Ass, to be seen as the mirror image of the assassin, it brings the tone of the film to be skewed, off-kilter with the expectations that may have led the viewer to its door.

There will always be a requirement for films such as Primal, filmed in close quarter, almost claustrophobic spaces, a maze of introspection and two sides of the same coin going up against each other; it doesn’t always follow that the film itself will capture the imagination. A real shame in this case as the story arguably had noble intentions; it just relies too much on the exploitation of a well-worn trope.

Ian D. Hall