BARTKOWIAK (2021)

At first sight, BARTKOWIAK looks like another JOHN WICK wannabe where a seemingly normal man gets involved with some powerful criminals, but they don't know how dangerous he is (in this case, it's a former MMA fighter named Tomasz Bartkowiak). The difference is that over an hour is dedicated to set the conflict up. That's right. The film has what's essentially a super long first act and it rushes through the big confrontation between the protagonist and the antagonist. Even if the script structure had been more organized, I can't imagine the final product being great. The reason why I gave NOBODY a positive grade is that is, despite following this same formula, it had enough unique elements to feel like a new experience for the viewer. This movie on the other hand is very generic, especially with its conclusion. Also, Pawel Sozoniuk (Tomasz's girlfriend's father) is the only interesting character. Long takes are the considered to be the best option when it comes to filming hand-to-hand combat sequences, because they showcase all the coordination and physical effort. If you're able to film it all in one go, great. If not, it's fine as long as you don't use the editing tools as a crutch. I don't advise you to create the illusion of a long take, because there are very few ways to do that without modern-day audiences noticing it. Here, the fights themselves are unmemorable yet decent, but there are several moments where someone or something briefly blocks the camera. Since this is the oldest and most obvious technique used to hide the cuts, all it does is distract the audience. Showing us a series of consecutive long takes would've sufficed.

3/10
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