SHELTER

Michael Mason (Jason Statham) is a former MI6 assassin living an isolated life with his dog in a remote lighthouse off the Scottish coast. During a violent storm he rescues a young girl named Jessie (Bodhi Rae Breathnach) from the sea. During a trip into town for supplies he exposes his location, leading his former handler Manafort (Bill Nighy) to send a ruthless mercenary named Workman (Bryan Vigier) to hunt him down and take him out. In typical Statham style, his character is a man of few words with a hidden past, a deadpan demeanour, and elite combat skills. When he does speak, it’s in his signature low volume, raspy tone. While I enjoyed this movie slightly more than his last endeavour (‘A working man’), Statham and Breathnach lack depth in their performances and their on screen connection, though the lean writing is partly responsible for the latter. The formulaic plot has a few continuity issues and the first half an hour is slow going. While the stunts are the film’s strongest suit, they are unfortunately the only card it has to play. Oh and the cardinal movie sin is committed – they kill the dog. Nope.