Dwayne Johnson and a giant gorilla...what's not to like?

One of my favourite critics is the late Richard Schickel who was the film review for Time magazine from 1965 until 2010. He turned a fine phrase but the one that really stuck in my mind is from his review of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), in which he said ‘you can’t criticise a theme park for not being a cathedral’. A rather elegant way of suggesting, quite rightly, that each film has to be judged on what it is and not what you would like it to be.

So to Rampage which, to paraphrase Popeye since we are in the mood for quoting, is what it is and that’s all that it is. But it is also a very good example of what it is.

There’s a certain disdain about films like this which, to my mind, is entirely misplaced. I once interviewed an award-winning actor at the Berlin Film Festival who was very sniffy about what they called ‘industrial film-making’, preferring to bask in the adulation of the art house set. Of course that actor rather neglected the fact that industrial film making is the engine that drives the train and allows them the luxury of their art house indulgence. Just to round off this story, that same actor wasn’t backward in coming forward when Marvel came to call. Just saying.

What people tend to overlook is that the quality of craft skills and technical excellence required to make a movie like Rampage is phenomenal. There are extraordinary levels of skill involved and it is evident in every frame if you take the trouble to look.

Inspired by a video game the film features Dwayne Johnson battling three giant creatures – an albino gorilla, a wolf, and a crocodile – or possibly an alligator, they’re a bit vague on species specifics. All three have all been grotesquely mutated by exposure to a genetic pathogen created by evil business tycoons Malin Akerman and Jake Lacy who plan to monetize the disastrous consequences.  This is essentially a Hollywood version of the Japanese kaiju – giant creature – genre.

The dramatic tension, such as it is, comes from the fact that the rampaging gorilla, George, is Johnson’s closest friend. The Special Forces agent turned primatologist rescued him from poachers; he has raised George from a child, bonding with him, and teaching him sign language scatology the better to conduct their bromance.

You may have found that last sentence a little implausible but the sheer joy of Rampage is that things like this are accepted as though they are the most natural in the world. A talented cast deliver huge chunks of exposition without batting an eyelid and it takes a degree of skill to expound this dialogue without the rather craven trick of nodding and winking to the audience. They all know exactly what is required, terse but implausible dialogue delivered with a straight face and an acting style just the right side of pantomime.

Malin Ackerman is suitably black-hearted as the sort of woman who would make Cruella De Vil feel uncomfortable, and she is rewarded with the kind of exit not seen since Die Hard (1988). Government agent Jeffrey Dean Morgan – a good old boy complete with cowboy drawl and a pearl-handled Colt – is plainly having the time of his life, while good-hearted scientist Naomie Harris just looks puzzled a lot. Although to Rampage’s credit, she doesn’t need saving, she is generally pro-active, and has an awful lot more agency in her character arc than she does as Moneypenny in the Bond franchise.

Of course the film trades heavily, as it should, on Johnson’s considerable personal charm. Just as an aside I wonder why he is so much more appealing against fantasy villains here and in Jumanji (2017) than against real-world villainy in a rare misfire like Baywatch (2017).

The pieces of the film take a while to come together but once we get the halfway point and the triple kaiju smack-down, set piece follows set piece with relentless vigour. Credit to San Andreas (2015) director Brad Peyton who’s now on his third film with Johnson, this stuff is hard to do but he does it well. If you don’t believe me then look at the bleached bones of the failures in this least forgiving of genres. John Carter anyone? Battleship? Tomb Raider?

To go back to where we came in, Rampage isn’t a cathedral nor does it try to be. However as a theme park ride it is definitely worth the price of a ticket.