Skin Trade (2014)

SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

The movie is wildly uneven but lively and timely - in its own surreal way

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

It wasn't great, but I'll give it 10 stars anyway, because Dolph tried. An A for effort.All these guys, Dolph + Tony Jaa + Ron Perlman + Michael Jai White, are talented action movie guys, but they've all been in way better action movies than this. Yes, they're getting old, but they can still do better.The action scenes in this movie unfortunately just kinda fell short of being considered to be that great overall. There's a couple of pretty decent fights. One of the Tony vs Dolph fights was pretty good, in an abandoned factory. Tony vs Michael Jai White was probably the best scene - very impressive that a guy as big as White can move like that. But, as for the rest of the movie, the abundance of dull shootout scenes just weren't very interesting or shot in an engaging or dynamic way.But in a weird way, it was amusing enough seeing Dolph try so hard to make this good that even though he mostly failed, I somehow still kinda enjoyed watching it.

Skin Trade is a moderately watchable B grade action flick.The whole affair has a real 80's vibe with larger than life hero's and villains set against a formula that been done many many times before. That said there's nothing inherently wrong with this film. As far as action shooters go this is entertaining. Its interesting too to see Dolph Lundgren still in the drivers seat. In spite of the fact I think he is nearing 60 he can still mix it up with some really decent martial arts fight scenes. I enjoyed this film. Its not pretending to be anything other than what it is and on this level I think it works quite well. Six out of ten from me.

The level of quality of a film determines how much effort I'll put into reviewing it, so this one will be brief. As Dolph Lundgren's long-gestating passion project, I had reasonably high hopes that this would be an entertaining, but hard-hitting, b-movie. While the film does address the problem of human trafficking, it never really felt organic to the plot, bringing the narrative to a standstill to comment on the issue at hand. From a writing standpoint, the film is in shambles, even for a b-grade action movie. There's too many characters and plot threads going on at the same time, with not enough development for any of them, let alone believable character motivation. One moment we're introduced to a character and then they're blown away in the next. Even the action isn't without fault here. Dolph Lundgren has never been an action star with a cool fighting style, usually just beating his opponents to a pulp. Same thing here, but that really isn't the core problem. It's the choice of the director/cinematographer/editor to shoot and edit some scenes in a quick-cut manner that doesn't let the audience get a good look at what is going on a lot of the time. Fortunately, Tony Jaa's scenes are better, in particular one extended sequence where he faces off against Michael Jai White. The acting is about what you'd expect from actors of this caliber. Overall, though, I was disappointed by how disjointed and unmotivated the story was, human trafficking angle or not. With the cast assembled, and how close the subject was to Dolph Lundgren's heart, I expected a little more.

A Slight Disappointment, Even Considering the Low Expectations of This Type of Thing. Topping Off a Higher Anticipation is the Cast of Admittedly Aging Dolph Lundgren and Peter Weller, Combined With the Kick-Assers Tony Jaa and Michael Jai White, with Ron Pelleman Added for a Bit of Spice.The Story of Human Trafficking, is Central to the Plot and is as Evil as it Gets, but the Movie Stays on That Course with Some Exploitation that Comes Across as a Voyeuristic Inclusion. The Non-Martial Arts Action Scenes are By the Book and are Quite Dull, Especially a Mid-Way Inclusion of a Motorcycle Chase that is Really Bad Production Wise.The Editing is Sloppy and the Movie Could Have Used Some Serious Post Production Enhancing. On the Up Side the Hand-to Hand Scenes are Expectedly Realistic and Punched Up by the Talent of the Participants. These are Really the Highlight of the Film.This is Lundgren's Baby and He has been Trying to Get it Filmed for Years. It's a Noble and Good Try but Cannot Escape its Low-Budget Roots and International Awkwardness at Times. Worth a Watch for Fans of This Type, Especially Lundgren/Ja/ White.