A2Z Analysiz: The Reunion (John Cena)

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DVD Release Date: Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Family can be a tricky thing. You know you’re supposed to love them, but sometimes they make it very difficult. WWE Studios’ “The Reunion” takes that simple concept and extrapolates it into an action/drama that starts off okay, then descends into implausibility, and eventually lands on ridiculous.

“The Reunion” follows the four Carey siblings, all from the same father but different mothers. The father was very wealthy but also cruel, and when he passes away he leaves instructions for his sizable fortune with his only daughter Nina (Amy Smart), the only child who spent time with him in his final days.

Nina presents those instructions to her half-brothers – Sam (John Cena), a cop on suspension for unnecessary aggression; Leo (Ethan Embry), a bail bondsman who can’t stay out of trouble; and Douglas (Boyd Holbrook), who finds out about his father’s passing the day he gets out of prison and meets his siblings for the first time afterwards.

Instructions dictate that the estranged siblings must run a business together for two full years, and then each will inherit the sum of $12 million. Is that a real thing rich people stipulate in their wills? Doesn’t matter, I’ll buy it for a movie setup.

However, these siblings can’t stand each other, so they think that prospect is doomed to fail. From there, the screenplay finds the most backwards ways to move the plot forward. Leo has a lot of money tied up in bringing in a criminal, who may have up and kidnapped one of the wealthiest men in America. There is a ransom for the wealthy man, so Leo reasons that they can recoup that reward by tracking him all the way to Mexico. Why not just set up a business and make something interesting happen there? This all just takes forever and makes no sense.

The movie just turns into a mess. Director Mike Pavone (who did a solid job with That’s What I Am) just can’t find balance between the attempted comedy and action sequences. Cena is okay in the lead role, but the script (also by Pavone) doesn’t give him much to attempt. Maybe someday someone will learn how to cast Cena correctly?

Score: *½

I grew up and now I write for Inside Pulse. Oh, and one time I saw a blimp!