all Sly Stallone “The Big Sulk,” because that’s about all he does here: sulk, avenge, preen, sulk some more, then avenge. Meanwhile, it rains. This remake of the Michael Caine classic just isn’t much good. Carter (Stallone) is a Vegas enforcer in Seattle trying to find out the truth behind his kid brother’s death. Doing that requires good clothes and murderous instinct, traits that Stallone honors beyond reproach.
Director Steven Kay creates an absurd villain in Jeremy Kinnear (Alan Cumming), a sexually confused Web tycoon who’s also exceedingly mean. Since this is a mob movie and there’s further acreage to chew on, Mickey Rourke gets a go. It’s cruel fun to see Rourke and Stallone prowling the same reel since they both lack what Bruce Willis (for example) exude when needed: ironic wit. Miranda Richardson (Carter’s sister-in-law) is sacrificed to thin plotting. Then, it rains some more.
