The Machine

An entertaining, light-hearted and wacky action comedy about a stand up comedian against the Russian Mafia. The main character befriends Igor on a trip in Russia and during the course of the evening becomes a legend of Russian folklore, gets involved with the Russian Mafia and steals a valuable watch. 20 years later, however, the past comes back to him and the Mafia comes for the watch. The film has a fun premise, the main character is a stand up comedian (even for real) so he can be funny and has decent lines, it's full of pop culture and movie references, which I always like in movies. The Russian Mafia is well rendered with lot of interesting assassins and oligarchs (and weird characters), it's well paced, has a likeable cast – even Mark Hamill, the father of the main character, is excellent – and there is the occasional brutal scene (a hand jammed down a throat!!), though the action scenes are average. The film has two storylines, one is present day, the other is a flashback where we see the main character become an icon of the Russian nation overnight. I liked both. Nothing great, but an enjoyable little fun movie with a wacky premise that knows how to make fun of itself. I wasn't expecting much, but it hit my mood. (Most people want to be Batman, not the one who killed his parents) 7/10. (14.09.2023)

This is exactly the kind of comedy where you feel from the first minutes that you will be entertained. A family man lives in a dysfunctional marriage, but one day the Russian mafia pays him a visit, demanding that he pay off his past debts. This is because once upon a time in his youth, there was something of a legend in Russia called "The Machine" who was famous among the gangs and who then stole something that the mafia now wants back. It has a decent and noisy beginning and then you look forward to further developments. Perhaps a little to its detriment, the further into the plot the film gets, it adds to the story but detracts quite a bit from the humour, so what appears to be a wacky comedy evoking the best of Seth Rogen or Adam Sandler eventually becomes more "just" humorous action entertainment, but thankfully despite this factor it manages to entertain and is actually quite good. (30.09.2023)