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Released by: Lionsgate
Released on: March 11th, 2014.
Director: Giorgio Serafini, James Coyne
Cast: Cung Le, Dolph Lundgren, Vinnie Jones
Year: 2014
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The Movie:
Sometimes a cookie-cutter contains a tasty cookie.
Mixed-martial arts fighter/actor Cung Le plays John - a war veteran suffering from serious PTSD who has returned home to piss poor job prospects, a cramped dump in a lousy neighborhood and an estranged family. One of his few bright spots is his best friend - amputee fellow soldier J.P. (Johnathan Kowalsky).
One night John sees a group of drug dealing skinheads beating brutally on a prostitute Tanya (Brianna Evigan). He steps in to help and ends up killing one man and severely injuring others. This brings him to the attention of gang leader Hollis (action staple Dolph Lundgren in long blond hair and massive mustache). As Hollis and his various associates (including two crooked cops on the Hollis payroll) try to track down the vet and kill him some serious collateral human damage occurs.
PUNCTURE WOUNDS operates on an almost zen-like sense of structural simplicity. The plot is mildly reminiscent of FIRST BLOOD if you subbed a powerful drug dealer for a small town sheriff since it focuses on a war vet and his return home where he encounters forces that provoke him violently. However, movies like this are becoming increasingly common on the DTV market. Plots are secondary - we are here for the action and in this case specifically the MMA melee style fighting. While there is plenty of gunfire, it's Le's devastating (and quite real - this doesn't look stunt-doubled) foot and fist work that shines. Director Georgio Serafini has done quite a few of these films and he's really good at them. Aside from some mildly annoying over reliance on jump-cutting and an unhealthy infatuation with the desaturated color palette, Serafini focuses on exciting and bloody action sequences.
Genre stalwart Vinnie Jones makes a brief appearance but aside from Le's convincing turn this movie is really another showcase for Dolph. His visual appearance here is pretty OTT but he couples that with a quieter and more subtle performance than usual for this kind of character. His final Mano a Mano bare knuckle showdown with Le is genuinely exciting and well shot. This is a flick that delivers the goods.
Video/Audio/Extras:
PUNCTURE WOUNDS penetrates on DVD with a solid 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer from Lionsgate. While the film relies on a fair amount of desaturation for visual appeal the overall image and clarity are solid. While this would obviously look better on Blu ray, this is a very strong SD presentation.
Audio is provided by a 5.1 Dolby Digital track that provides plenty of surround action and lots of oomph in the LFE channel. Dialog is clear and the track is devoid of any obvious flaws.
Extras consist of a decent featurette about the making of the film that features most of the cast and crew and a Lionsgate trailer reel. The featurette doesn't break any new ground but does show the cast and director to have some enthusiasm for the film - especially Le who considered this a bit of a "dream project".
The Final Word:
Though derivative and basically plotted, PUNCTURE WOUNDS is a well made and effective genre piece. If kick ass action with a focus on MMA moves and bone crunching floats your boat you'll be well served here. Dolph in a fun new "look" is the icing on the battered cake. Recommended.
