It’s a gore-soaked sci-fi/action black comedy about a shy gamer who learns to stop worrying and take control of his own life.
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In Guns Akimbo, Daniel Radcliffe plays Miles, a coding drone who spends his days glued to various devices. One night, he gets into a spat on a site for Skizm, an underground fight club that selects random oddballs and criminals and pairs them against each other in death bouts. Although there is a system of scoring points, violence and death are real.
Skizm’s boss (Ned Dennehy) and his thugs, offended by Miles’s online commentary, slams through his door and bolt guns to his hands, turning him into a participant. The surgically attached guns prove to be a hassle (other than shooting). Mile’s opponent, Nic (Samara Weaving), is one of the top scorers in Skizm. Will our geeky main character Miles manage to win the bout against Nix and live?
Guns Akimbo is bathed in rich neon that’s a feast for the eyes, like some lurid comic book brought to life, while the soundtrack is filled with pop and punk classics that underscore the action in a predictable, but suitably stirring fashion.
Guns Akimbo is a rollercoaster of a movie from the start till the end. The influence of video games is clear and taking it to the next level, players actually die if they lose. Writer-director Jason Lei Howden does try to sneak social commentary into proceedings, with the film satirising reality TV and attacking the poison of online comments. Overall, the film is great if you are finding something mindless to laugh about, and if you can get over the initial gore.
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