Term Life is the kind of movie that makes me think deeply the next day, just because I can’t remember the title anymore. Let alone I remember anything significant content wise. At first I didn’t even feel like watching this comical crime film, due to the presence of Vince Vaughn. He isn’t exactly my favorite actor. Let’s say he already got on my nerves in The internship and Wedding Crashers. But ultimately I must admit that his presence was quite bearable in this film. He really doesn’t look like a criminal and I was afraid he would come up with something semi-comic (which wouldn’t be funny anyway). But fortunately this wasn’t the case. There are also some well-known actors present, even though their roles are meaningless after all.
Nick Barrow (Vince Vaughn) isn’t what you’d call an active criminal, but rather a criminal standing at the sidelines. He constructs robberies and burglaries. In short, he observes the target, makes the planning (complete with electrical schematics, codes and timing) and sells it to the highest bidder. After a robbery ends badly with the participating criminals being eliminated and the loot totally gone, it’s time for Nick to make his escape as quickly as possible. One of the dead criminals appears to be the son of Victor Fuentes (Jordi Molla), the big chief of a Mexican drug cartel. Add to this a gang of corrupt cops and you understand that Nick is actually in deep shit. The only one he’s worried about the most, is his daughter Cate (Hailee Steinfeld). He hasn’t talked to her for years now and only has a collection of photos in a shoebox which he made secretly. A new life insurance is his solution. His only concern is to stay alive the next three weeks in the company of his rebellious daughter.
As mentioned before, a whole bunch of famous actors joined this “overgrown by genres” film. You’ll see Jon Favreau (Chef) for about 3 minutes. Jonathan Banks (Breaking Bad) plays one of the most interesting parts – a kind of sidelined criminal who’s so good-natured to help Nick and to provide some inside information. If there’s one person who has the most funny dialogue lines, then it’s him. The most successful rendition is played by Bill Paxton. A perfect portrait of a corrupt cop who’s doing everything to prevent that he’s being condemned by the “Internal affairs”. Even if this is detrimental to his partners in crime.
Term Life is simply a typical action movie with some forced comedy; and finally they’ve mixed it with a cheesy family drama – the type of family film about a father-daughter relationship that went wrong. In the beginning the teenage daughter is always pissed at the ever-absent father. So expect some embarrassing moments for Nick who tries to pick up the pieces as a responsible and caring father. The final outcome is as predictable as the fact that Easter Monday next year will be on a Monday. This insignificant movie suffocated itself with the hodgepodge of genres. I guess they weren’t really fully aware of which direction they finally wanted to go. And it’s really not a good sign when a ridiculous hairdo draws the most attention of movie lovers.
Term Life is available now on DVD, Blu-ray and on-demand services.
Peter Pluymers
For more of Peter Pluymers’ movie reviews, check out My Opinion as a Movie-Freak
David Edwards is the editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television
