Reviewed by Alicia Glass

Studio: Universal Pictures

MPAA Rating: R

Director: Miguel Sapochnik

Review Rating: 7 Replacement Hearts

In a not-too-distant future where replacement organs can be bought (and repossessed) on credit, one of the finest Repo Men tries to go straight after an accident lands him in debt with a replacement heart.

Now, I know, this movie got a lot of flack because Repo! The Genetic Opera came first, and the stories are incredibly similar. I for one adored the Opera, but this movie by contrast was actually quite good too. Jude Law stars as Remy, the lead, who wants nothing more than to settle down within the framework of the company and sell the organs rather than repossess them, despite being very good at his job. Forest Whitaker stars as his partner, Jake, who appears not to have the same desires as Remy, and thinks things should stay just as they are. Somewhere towards the latter half of the movie, Jake reveals himself to be more of a bad guy than you might think, and I’m sorry to say that kind of role just doesn’t fit Whitaker very well – he’s much better at the soulful puppy-dog-eyes good guy. We have Liev Schreiber as head bad guy of the Company, Frank, and we know damn well his acting talents range everywhere, so of course he does a fine job at it.

So, Remy doesn’t care for being a Repo Man, and wants to be a Salesman, with me so far right? Pay close attention to the various services offered by the Company as far as replacement body parts towards the beginning of the movie goes, it becomes very prevalent later on. Remy goes through an “accident” while on a Repo job, and gee surprise, wakes up to find he’s gotten a replacement heart that the Company is happy to extend him credit on. But not forever, you still have to make payments, and apparently a Salesman doesn’t make nearly as much as a Repo Man. Remy falls behind on his payments, his pride won’t let him ask for help, his wife up and poofs because she can’t handle the stress, and when Remy finally turns to his partner for help of a sorts, the roof falls in. (Think I’m kidding? See the movie.) And up until that point, yes like me, you might’ve been saying, oh come on, that’s so predictable it’s just sad. Well just wait, tough it out, because seriously – you won’t see the surprise ending coming. I didn’t.

It’s a shame this movie didn’t get nearly the publicity it deserved. Take an evening for the coming Halloween and devote a night to Repo Men, it’s worth it. Repo Men gets a rating of seven replacement hearts!