Review | The Doorman movie review: Ruby Rose struggles in unintentionally funny Die Hard knock-off
- Rose is desperately out of her depth as she tries, and fails, to channel Bruce Willis in this Die Hard remake that’s filled with a string of awkward clichés
- Even the efforts of Japanese director Ryuhei Kitamura, best known for Versus and Godzilla: Final Wars, can’t save this flimsy actioner
1.5/5 stars
Androgynous antipodean starlet Ruby Rose plays a former US marine who takes on a building full of crooks in this shameless low-rent Die Hard knock-off. Japanese director Ryuhei Kitamura, best known for Versus and Godzilla: Final Wars, has little opportunity to bring his goofball excesses to this crumbling slice of half-baked cheese; The Doorman is only entertaining when it becomes unintentionally funny.
Returning to New York after a disastrous military op in Romania, Ali Gorsky (Rose) lands a job as doorman at a classy apartment building, where her estranged relatives live. As it empties over the Easter holiday, her dastardly colleague Borz (Aksel Hennie) ushers in a team of violent Euro-criminals, led by Dubois (Jean Reno), who are searching for a stash of priceless paintings hidden in the walls. Barricaded inside with no phone signal, Ali takes it upon herself to save her family and stop the bad guys.
After promising supporting turns in established action franchises Resident Evil, John Wick, and xXx, The Doorman provides a legitimate action vehicle of her own, but the 34-year-old Rose appears desperately out of her depth.
Wandering the hallways in ill-fitting costumes, displaying the emotional range of a G.I. Joe doll, Rose is woefully unconvincing as either a traumatised combat veteran or a competent doorman. During the action sequences she appears agile, but her diminutive frame is hardly a threat to Dubois’ team of hardened mercenaries.