Paul (Jesse Metcalfe) owns a company that works with cryptocurrency. In desperate need of some finances to keep his company afloat, Paul decides to seek out his father, who he hasn’t seen in years. Paul’s father, Robert (Bruce Willis), lives in a secret retirement village, and Paul travels to visit him. Upon Paul’s arrival at the retirement village, he finds the place a little unusual. Greeted and shown around by Kate (Kelly Greyson), Paul sees that nothing is what it seems, and the village has a strange atmosphere.
Shortly after Paul joins up with his father, the village is attacked by a group of highly skilled criminals led by a man named Balzary (Chad Michael Murray). Balzary has a score to settle with Paul’s father, Robert. But with the village under attack, Paul makes the ultimate discovery about his father, finding Robert once worked as a CIA agent. Now, Paul, Robert and Kate must lay low in a fortress-like bunker and take out the bad guys before Balzary gets the ultimate revenge.
Fortress is best described as an action film with some minor sci-fi moments. The plot is brainless and has some slightly creative moments, especially when it comes to the concept of the Fortress itself. The plot takes a little while to get things into motion, trying to be mysterious with the plot. Despite the scenes and moments that are initially not quite explained, the plot soon becomes rather predictable.
As far as performances go, Bruce Willis fans will generally know what to expect by now, given his recent fistful of films. Sadly, the actor once again is fairly monotone, especially in his voice. The various stunt doubles and stand-ins used at various times are extremely distracting. Jesse Metcalfe as Paul is a disappointing character to follow. He spends the majority of the film either talking about finances or complaining about not fully knowing who his father really is. Moments of action that come from Paul are baffling; after all, he works in finance. Chad Michael Murray as Balzary is the most fun among the leads. He’s playing the villain-like role with lots of energy as if he were a villain in a Batman film. It’s evident the actor is enjoying playing this type of character, which is nice to see.
Overall, with some creative moments relating to its story, plot and technology, Fortress delivers a cheesy and brainless time. Bruce Willis is again fairly monotone and the use of stunt doubles is distracting and obvious. Jesse Metcalfe plays an uninteresting character, but to my surprise, actor Chad Michael Murray seems to be having the most fun among the leads. Seeking a mystery? You won’t find that here as nothing is ever surprising, but instead, it’s all highly predictable and can easily help pass time or provide a minor amount of entertainment for some.
3.2/10
4th July 2022
Written by Peter Walkden
WALKDEN ENTERTAINMENT
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