Shelter Review: Jason Statham's January Action Thriller Gets The Job Done

It's that magical time between the holidays and the Academy Awards where studios tend to dump their productions possessing the least amount of potential upside. But it is within that time frame that a select few stars tend to shine. Jason Statham is one of those stars, but his latest film, "Shelter" doesn't have quite the right luster.

The movie marks the first collaboration between the Brit action star and filmmaker Ric Roman Waugh, who has recently collaborated with fellow so-bad-they're-good-action-movie king Gerard Butler on "Angel Has Fallen" and both "Greenland" films. "Shelter" features Statham as Mason, a solitary man with a murky past who finds himself having to keep someone safe, even if it means getting them as far away from himself as possible. It's more of what we all seem to love from an actor who has succeeded in turning his screen presence into a brand, but it's a little off-kilter compared to his recent output.

"Shelter" aims higher than typical Statham fare by taking itself more seriously, but in doing so, it misses the mark on what makes his best work so enjoyable in the first place. 

Last year's "A Working Man" (which we also reviewed) was the type of star vehicle that wasted no time showing you what was in store. But "Shelter" feels like a different breed. When the film begins, Mason lives alone on an island with an abandoned lighthouse, with only his nameless dog to keep him company. He periodically receives supply shipments via boat, delivered to his doorstep by a young girl named Jesse (Bodhi Rae Breathnach). 

Jesse leaves little gifts with his orders, trying to break through this curmudgeonly loner's exterior shell. But a storm at sea nearly drowns her, killing her uncle and stranding her in Mason's care. Because he is a Jason Statham protagonist, we know Mason must have some dramatic reason for why he can't just take her to the Scottish mainland and get her the care she needs. But the film is in no rush to explain why, choosing instead to take its time letting Mason and Jesse bond over chess.

Perhaps if this was a Netflix original, the movie would have opened with a flash of violence, a quick explosive play to hook the viewer so they don't scroll away to some other title that has no issue jumping ahead to the fireworks factory. In that way, it's quite admirable Ric Roman Waugh had the patience and resolve to give the viewer the time necessary to invest in Mason and Jesse's relationship. But having gone into this screening absolutely blind — it's a Statham flick, after all — I began actually questioning whether we were ever going to leave this little island or if I was going to get to see Statham shoot or dropkick any bad guys. A quiet little drama next to an old lighthouse wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, but would we really need Statham for that?

Luckily, of course, Mason does journey to the mainland when Jesse's injury is infected and he needs sundries from a pharmacy. The moment a security camera picks up his face, the film cartoonishly speeds up the pace, dumping an elaborate plot involving Steve Manafort (Bill Nighy), the soon to be fired head of MI-6; his replacement Roberta Frost (Naomi Ackie); and an Orwellian security camera project. 

Now Mason has to go on the run with Jesse in tow, when there is nowhere on Earth to hide from this advanced surveillance apparatus that can pluck their faces out of a passerby's smartphone. And yes, he has to dropkick and shoot people to keep them both safe. Unfortunately, once we advance into the exciting part of the narrative, it never gels the way we might hope.

When you look at all the most memorable Jason Statham performances, the most entertaining ones tend to be, first and foremost, fun. But the curious way "Shelter" is structured saps the picture from ever truly achieving that state. Ric Roman Waugh, a former stuntman turned filmmaker, has a different approach to action flicks than "John Wick" helmers Chad Stahelski and David Leitch. Both of those men have proven adept at lensing drama and telling emotional stories, but their best work is typified more for their approach to the action itself and the way it pushes the drama forward.

Waugh, in the majority of his filmography, seems to be a guy who directs action as a means to an end, who seems like he really wants to make serious dramas, but can only get them funded if people get shot at or things explode. There's one sequence in "Shelter," the film's first action set piece, where Mason takes out a team of highly trained operatives with a bunch of booby traps he's set on the island, that feels truly inspired. It's a big blast of excitement after we've spent so much time watching Mason and Jesse develop a kinship. 

But none of the subsequent car chases, hand to hand combat scenes, or shootouts have the same level of verve. In fact, none of the film's spy-fi plot around black ops and international intrigue ever feel as alive as the quieter moments between Mason and Jesse as kindred spirits. It means we take a lot of time with the set-up, then once they're put in danger, the danger itself feels like a rerun they're trapped in, not a life or death epic. 

Jason Statham and Bodhi Rae Breathnach have great chemistry and he can do serious quite well. It's just a matter of whether we want to see him do it in a vehicle designed to be a compelling drama or in a rickety structure better suited for quips and one-liners. There is exactly one moment of levity in the entire film that elicited a laugh at my screening and it was in the second to last scene. "Shelter" has its moments as a quiet character study, but the main attraction just isn't up to snuff. 

"Shelter" hits theaters on January 30.