Bullet (1996)

Absolutely the worst movie.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Fresh from prison Butch 'Bullet' Stein (Mickey Rourke), a Jewish ex-convict with sticky fingers and some nasty drug habits, moves back in with his parents and two brothers. His eldest brother Louis (Ted Levine) is a Vietnam war veteran with a severe case of post-traumatic stress, which keeps him locked up in his room-fortress and reliving his experiences. The youngest is Ruby (Adrien Brody), the artistic soul of the family, a talented street artist misunderstood by his parents, but loved and cherished by both his brothers. On release Butch however goes back to his old ways of stealing (from his neighbours or from drug dealers) and is quick to remind about his presence to former foes. Among them local drug lord Tank (Tupac Shakur)...Famed more for this being the last movie done by Tupac Shakury, than for its actual quality, "Bullet" is a movie overladen by this burden. Within the confines of a chaotic script lies an engaging story, but one that is dragged down by overly rash plotting and over-the-top characters, which threaten to turn the movie into a farce. Nonetheless the three lead roles are masterfully captioned by Rourke, Brody and Levine, each rather memorable with their strong respective presence. Especially the first is tour de force, showing off some of his intricate acting capabilities, which self-detonated during the nineties to throttle him to relative anonymity. Bullet is strong macho persona thrust in between worlds, but controlled by his crack lifestyle. At the same time after his time in prison he is unable to cope with his homosexual tendencies, released during his stay behind bars, whereas the movie suggests more than it explicitly states about his penitentiary experiences. These chaotic character traits deliver a crisp persona with which we are invited to venture into the life of Bullet and his surroundings.However thrust on top of the story are several themes, which cause it to lose focus. Especially the whole ordeal with Tank meanders through some poor plotting to come to an unsatisfying conclusion. Unfortunately for Shakur his final role wasn't exactly one worth being remembered by. The movie however in general jumps around, at times uncontrollably, as if unable to really envisage whether it has a message or is just another street crime story with no purpose.

I have to agree somewhat with the comment entered before mine. The film is pretty predictable, had a weak storyline, contains a LOT of violence, and is full of holes.... and yet the characters (the two bothers and the parents especially) --- if not all always put in credible situations 100% of the time --- are very strong and surprisingly deeply moving, Rourke's perhaps being the weakest written and acted. Ted Levine, as the mentally-disturbed war vet brother, is especially moving and disturbing despite a scene or two (training children in warfare from atop a sandpile) which were a bit far-fetched. In fact I would have to say that the film itself is overall quite disturbing, violent, and a bit ugly, yet those aspects only cause the few images of humanity and tenderness to shine all the more. And isn't that what director Rourke intended...?Overall, I'd say ---- with all the incredibly weak screenplays, seemingly written by ten-year- olds, that end up on the big screen every day --- his film is surprisingly well-crafted and under-rated, and definitely worth a look.

I watched Bullet one night expecting to have something to keep me occupied for a little while. With it only being an hour and a half long I figured it would move quick and keep me interested.The plot was predictable and really had no twists to it. It reminded me of King Of New York in a way because we see him leave prison and go right back to doing stupid stuff that almost got him killed before. You know how the movie will end as soon as it starts. Tupac could have killed Bullet multiple times in the movie, but toys with him to "torture" him and get revenge. But at the end he just shoots him and runs away. Nothing clever and nothing unexpected. They attempted to build suspense but it led nowhere.Tupac's performance was not as good as some of his other movies, and it was a really cliché type of character anyway. Adrien Brody was underused. Mickey Rourke was good as usual. He's great at playing the twisted hardass. Ted Levine was also great. Who better to play the paranoid ex-army psycho brother? Also keep an eye out for Donnie Wahlberg playing Big Balls haha.So in general Bullet was OK. If you're bored check it out. You can kill an hour and a half. Wasn't too bad.

I really enjoyed this dark movie which follows the life of Butch 'Bullet' Stein played by Mickey Rourke. The movie shows you the life of 'Bullet' from when he first gets out prison and the events that follow. I like how the film makes you feel like you are there following his life. I also enjoyed the other characters in the film and feel they were portrayed very well and had depth. Pitting 'Bullet' against 'Tank' played by Tupac Shakur worked perfectly. I was really impressed with this film overall and have watched it several times. Remember though, it is dark, and not a positive type of movie so it may not be for everybody. But, for those who like a tough, gritty Mickey Rourke it's a must see!