Marine Corps sniper Bob Lee Swagger (Mark Wahlberg) leaves the military for good (or so he thinks) after a mission goes wrong and he gets left for dead behind enemy lines. He now lives in the hills with his dog, still bitter and alone, until one day Colonel Isaac Johnson (Danny Glover) comes knocking. He tells him that it's his patriotic duty to help them stop an attempt on the president's life by another sniper, so he'll need to come and show them how he'd do it if he were the assassin. Having pushed Bob's buttons (and his deep-seeded patriotism and vow to defend the USA), Bob agrees and shows them how it could be done... but then he's double-crossed and set up as the fall-guy for the assassin's attack. Bob manages to get away after getting shot twice at point-blank range and falling through the roof below him, disarming an FBI agent, stealing a car and outsmarting tons of law enforcement officials and he fled the area. He then goes to the only person he can think of who might help him... his late spotter's wife Sarah Fenn (Kate Mara) who spent some time training as a nurse, so she could patch him up. He then allies himself with the FBI agent he'd disarmed, Nick Memphis (Michael Peña) and together they embark on a mission to clear Swagger's name and find out who was responsible for the assassination.

"Shooter" is a decent (and very by-the-book) action movie that doesn't really present anything new or interesting. There's nothing in this movie that we haven't seen before in other action movies, but it still does a decent job of being entertaining – with some great explosions, lots of sniper head-shots, larger-than-life heroes, cliché slow-motion "check me out as I'm walking away with my cool sunglasses on" moments, and so on. I also noticed that many of the scenes were borrowed from "The Bourne Identity" (which I consider a much better movie) and other action movies, but that's the nature of Hollywood I guess (take old ideas and rehash them as many times as you possibly can). I did learn one cool new thing though... apparently you can get everything you need to build Napalm bombs at Home Depot (because if you see it in a movie, it must be true... right?). Overall, if all you're looking for is a good no-brains-required action movie with cool explosions, then "Shooter" is for you. Sometimes we all need that, but there are much better movies out there to fill that need.

All in all, I'd give this movie 2.5 STARS (out of 5). Re-watch value: LOW (I'd rather re-watch "The Bourne Identity" instead).

Brett's Review

"Shooter" is a movie about a conspiracy to assassinate the president… wait we have seen this before. Mark Wahlberg stars in an action thriller about an honorable and brilliant Marine marksman Bob Lee Swagger (retired because his last mission went wrong…didn't see this coming.) Bobby Lee finds himself plunged in an unthinkable situation: framed as a Presidential assassin (didn't see this one either.) A government conspiracy that creates a vortex that keeps spinning around Bobby Lee as he races to prove his innocence even as he is pursued by every law enforcement agency in the country (what you mean car chases also?) He is also pursued by a shadowy organization run by some of the highest people in power, as a relentless manhunt aimed at destroying the secrets he has uncovered (no this must be a totally original film!)

So we have a government conspiracy, we have big explosion, we have lots of shootouts, we have car chases, and even a man and woman brought together by all of this. Of course leading this is Markey Mark…oh yeah, did I mention Danny Glover trying to cover up everything? Overall, this is a total action movie that we have seen before -- the story may be changed to protect the innocent, however it doesn't stop the fact that everything in this movie is almost cookie cutter... blow shit up and shoot everything in sight, with a car chase to make the frosting. Wrap this around a conspiracy, and throw in a couple of named actors and we have "Shooter". However Wahlberg and Glover did do a good job of acting (it was good to see Glover again), and the chemistry between the two kept me in my seat and did bring the movie up a notch.

Overall Rating: 2 Stars (out of 5). Re-Watch Value: Low (when I'm bored and it's on cable maybe.)

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