WFG RATING: B

Lionsgate and Grindhouse Entertainment presents a Convergence Entertainment Group production in association with BondIt Media Capital. Directed by Justin Routt. Produced by Joel Cohen, Randal Emmett, and Gwen Osborne. Written by Justin Routt, Cory Todd Hughes, and Adrian Speckert. Cinematography by Cale Finot. Edited by Marc Fusco. 

Stars Jason Patric, Sylvester Stallone, Josh Wiggins, Dash Mihok, Jeff Chase, Josh Whites, Joel Cohen, and Victoria Paige Watkins. 

Sylvester Stallone takes a very rare role as an antagonist in this action thriller with lots of heart from director Justin Routt.

James Frank is a former cop who has found work as a security guard delivering money and more via an armored truck. Joining him is his son Casey, who is going to be a dad soon. Frank has suffered from both PTSD from an incident that changed his life forever and caused him to become an alcoholic in recovery. When the duo gets assigned a mysterious cache to deliver, Frank is reluctant at first but when his boss threatens him, he takes on the mission.

En route to the delivery location, they are met with resistance on a bridge by a gang of thieves who blow out their tires. Led by “Rook”, the gang of thieves surround the truck with James and Casey inside. Rook doesn’t want to kill either of the guards. Knowing James’ history, Rook seems to have a bit of respect but wants what’s in the truck. Who will come out on top when all is said and done?

From the surface, it looks like a routine by the numbers action film. However, with an 88-minute running time, the first act focuses on our protagonists James and Casey, a father and son duo working as armored truck guards. We get a background into their situation, with the former, played by a pretty good Jason Patric, attending an AA meeting as a group leader. However, he is still reeling from the event that turned him towards the bottle. As for Casey, played by Josh Wiggins, he just wants to mend the once broken bond between father and son, which is why he joins his father on the job.

On the antagonist side, we get a rare villain appearance from the legendary Sylvester Stallone as thief leader Rook. He has a team including Dash Mihok, who plays the equivalent of an unhinged member of a villain crew (and a damn good one at that); Jeff Chase’s Viper and Josh Whites’s Echo. What is interesting about Stallone and Mihok’s characters in particular are that they are like night and day. Stallone has no intention of harm towards the protagonists,  rather treat it like a bank robbery while Mihok is willing to do whatever it takes to make the score, even if it means killing our father-son team. 

There are a few interesting twists on both sides of the spectrum, and does have a sense of predictability. However, who doesn’t love a decent action film that’s is slightly above the ho-hum same riff? Armor isn’t perfect, but does hold its own thanks to a flawed protagonist and rare antagonist role for Sly Stallone. Worth checking out!

The film will be released in select theaters, On Demand, and Digital on November 22.