WFG RATING: A- (both films)

Republic Pictures presents a Kapital Entertainment production in association with Nomadic Pictures. Directed by Adam Davison. Produced by Ryan Phillippe, Adam Davison, Michael Frislev, Aaron Kaplan, Jaiden Kaplan, Michael Lohmann, and Chad Oakes. Written by T.J. Brady, Rasheed Nelson, and John Hlavin. Cinematography by Alwyn Kumst. Edited by Christopher A. Smith.

Stars Ryan Phillippe, Amelie Hoeferle, Sara Canning, Richard Harmon, Beverley Elliott, Sage Linder, Jonathan Whitesell, and C. Thomas Howell.

A former Special Forces soldier goes into a new brand of war in this two-film action epic starring one of the 90’s top teen idols and one of the 80’s most iconic actors.

CHAPTER ONE

Danny Burkett had spent over two decades in war and it has affected his relationship with estranged wife Janine and even more estranged daughter Alex. Danny returns in time to watch Alex at a soccer game and tells Janine he has retired from combat. When he has a chance to reconnect with Alex in the form of a college road trip, things at first seem standoff-ish. However, when he tells Alex he no longer will be going back, she is elated.

En route to an art school located hours away, the duo are unable to find any lodging in the area. Coming across a local general store, the cashier tells them about a campground nearby that they can go to for the night and to look out for a “1 mile” marker. They head there and instantly, they soon learn it will be a fight for survival. An off-the-grid community nearby want Alex for something very devious, but Danny will not let it happen. The two must try to survive and escape no matter what it takes.

CHAPTER TWO

Months have passed since Danny and Alex Burkett have escaped a dangerous community located in an off-the-grid area. As Alex prepares to start school, she is happy that her parents have gotten back together. However, the joy is short lived as Stanley Dixon, the leader of the community, has kidnapped Alex. Seeking revenge for the death of his son, Stanley challenges Danny to return to the community and attempt to get his daughter back.

Meanwhile, Alex attempts to escape on numerous occasions and eventually finds an ally in Lily, a woman who was once like Alex. However, she was kidnapped and ended up pregnant, having a baby with Wayne, a member of the community. Alex learns that the kidnapped women are forced to have babies due to a toxicity in the water that have made the women living there unable to have children. When Danny arrives at the community, he plans to stop Stanley and the community once and for all. However, Stanley may have an ace in the hole that not even Danny was expecting.

Directed by Adam Davison, this two-film action epic is rightfully done as it is a story that cannot be kept under one film. There’s too many elements that work together that makes it impossible to keep under one film. And smartly, rather than go the route of a three-hour film, the filmmakers wisely decide to split it in two. That allows the viewers to get a break in between the films, but the good news is that both films will be released on the same day. While in some cases, films that have two parts have release dates of months or even a year apart, this one allows the viewers to see the first one, get a little break if they want, and then enjoy the conclusion.

In recent years, 90’s heartthrob Ryan Phillippe has been getting a chance to showcase his skills as a potential action star, notably with the Shooter series that ran from 2016 to 2018 and the indie action film The 2^nd in 2020, where he had a chance to showcase his martial arts skills as a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. Here, he plays a man who loves combat but was forced into retirement with this giving him the chance to reconnect with his estranged family, especially his college bound daughter Alex, terrifically played by Amelie Hoeferle.

The dynamic between Danny and Alex is one of importance as it starts out very estranged and it is because she blames Danny’s career as a means to lose touch with her. In some ways, Alex also takes those frustrations out on mom Janine, played by the great Sara Canning. However, it is because Alex has some expectations, or so she feels, that she resents her mother just as much as her father’s constant need for war. It is when Danny reveals he has retired that she sees hope for reconciliation, especially when it comes to helping her learn the tactics of survival.

Between the two films, Alex goes through the most change. In the first film, she has this rebellious streak, but when she sees death in front of her, she suffers panic attacks only to be comforted by her father. In the second film, set a few months later, Alex has grown more confident and soon finds herself having aspects of both her parents, but especially her father’s survival skills when needed.

80’s icon C. Thomas Howell, who many will know from The Outsiders, Red Dawn, and many other films of the era, is excellent in the role of Stanley, the leader of an off-the-grid community who revel in kidnapping random women and force them to get pregnant. It sounds very insane, but the reasoning is that the water supply in the community has caused the women who already live there to be unable to have children and thus, expand the community. Final Destination: Bloodlines fans will get to see co-star Richard Harmon in the role of Stanley’s occasionally unhinged son.

As mentioned, the film allows Phillippe to showcase his skills in film combat and he does quite well. We see him using close quarter combat, defending himself in some knife fights, and in a great nod to old school martial arts films, knocks out a towering cocky good with one roundhouse kick. While Hoeferle gets in on a little bit of action in the first film to help her dad, it is the second film where she stands out and does what she can to survive while waiting for her father to return.

One Mile: Chapter One and One Mile: Chapter Two is a wild survival indie ride that wisely not only splits in two, but allows viewer to watch both films in a day rather than wait a year apart. Ryan Phillippe once again shows his potential in action films while C. Thomas Howell is an amazing villain who may have purpose, but resorts to desperate and dangerous methods. Some fun action here and great performances as well.

Both films will be released on Digital on February 20.