What's Next On My List? The Death and Life of Bobby Z

As a tradition, each year in memory of Paul Walker, I review a movie that he starred in as long as I run out. I miss him terribly still... he was truly one of my favorites. This is for you, happy birthday!

The Death and Life of Bobby Z (2007)

Tim Kearney (Paul Walker) is freed from prison for an exchange, where he has to impersonate a drug dealer by the name of Bobby Z. Having been a marine, Tim can handle himself, but people want both him and Bobby dead, and he has to find a way to get away from both. 

This film was not well received, but honestly, I had great fun watching it. Paul Walker is someone who was type cast in his life. Usually some kind of cop or undercover cop, or FBI agent, and so on, you know what I mean. Last year I talked about Meet the Deedles (1988), which was a very silly family movie, but he did a great job. Here, he is a dumbass who loses his temper quite often, and to get his life in order he enrolled in the marines. However, when life throws him a bone, he takes the opportunity. I liked that when there were no eyes on him, and he wasn't supposed to be a well calculated drug dealer, as Bobby Z, but his real self, Tim, came out, he was just a goofy guy. And Walker did a great job. More than anything, he was horrible at playing Bobby, and I liked that too, because why would a random marine be a trained actor? There were a lot of things that had to go right for him to get away with this impersonation, and most things actually go terribly wrong. 

This was definitely not the best movie I have ever seen, but for some reason, I cannot help but feel like it was not meant to be anything more than what we saw. It was great fight scene, and famous people acting together excellently. Olivia Wilde and Walker had wonderful chemistry. Wilde is slowly becoming one of the most prominent figures in Hollywood, and she is not only an outstanding actress, but a wonderful director. It is fun to see her in a more simple role and at the beginnings of her stardom. And yet, she really stood out in this cast of A-listers are well. Laurence Fishburne played an asshole, but he did a great job at it, and really, have you ever seen Fishburne be not good at his job? And the cast also includes Joaquim de Almeida, as a kind of antagonist, but really, deciding who is good or bad in this movie is quite hard. That said, de Almeida is fantastic: I adore this guy. Any role he does, any character he portrays, it keeps leaving me with wanting more. 

This is a straightforward action movie with some real A-listers. It is just a 90 minute run with great twists, in my humble opinion. Honestly, of all the movies I have left to see from Walker, this was a really pleasant surprise, and I am glad I waited to see it. I definitely recommend it.

I still have a couple of movies left with Walker, and as long as I do, I will make these yearly posts. I really miss this guy. Talking about him reminds me of all the incredibly talented people we have lost during the years, and how the world is slowly but surely going to shit and just... It breaks my heart over and over. But we are blessed again to still have the movies and songs and books they left behind.

Until the next item on my list!