Sometimes, I feel like there really isn’t any movies worth watching – either on the big screen or through a streaming service.
There seems to be a lack of interesting storylines coming out lately and when I saw the trailer for “Normal,” I already had an idea on how terrible it would be.
Turns out, I was right – the storyline was pathetic and weak despite being something original.
Honestly, the only things that saved it for me were the ironic deaths and just how absurd everything was playing out in the theater.
Normal is an action film directed by Ben Wheatley and written by Derek Kolstad, based on a story by Kolstad and Bob Odenkirk.
Odenkirk also headlines the film alongside actors Henry Winkler, Lena Headey, Reena Jolly, Jess McLeod, and Brendan Fletcher.
The film is rated R for strong bloody violence, and language and clocks in right at 90 minutes long.
Ulysses (Odenkirk) arrives in Normal, Minn., during the wintertime to serve as interim sheriff following the death of the town’s previous sheriff.
He quickly has friendly interactions with his deputies, town residents, and local shopkeepers, and the mayor (Winkler) even offers to make him the permanent sheriff.
Not long after attending the former sheriff’s celebration of life, a bank robbery draws him to the local bank.
When he enters to negotiate with the robbers, his own deputies open fire on him, revealing that the town’s law enforcement is compromised.
Inside the bank, Ulysses discovers a hidden cache of cash, gold bars, and several military-grade weapons tied to a criminal operation connected to the Yakuza.
Rather than arrest the two bank robbers, Lori (Jolly) and Keith (Fletcher), Ulysses allies with them after realizing they have stumbled into a larger conspiracy.
The three unbox some of the weapons stored in the vault and use them to fight their way out of the bank.
Moving down the town’s main street, they engage in a series of violent confrontations with townspeople, including shopkeepers Ulysses had met earlier.
Multiple residents are killed during these encounters as Ulysses and the robbers attempt to escape.
During the robbery, a Yakuza operative working as a bank security guard sends a coded message alerting Yakuza leaders to a threat against their operation.
In response, a group of Yakuza members depart Japan on a private jet bound for Normal.
However, Ulysses help Lori and Keith leave the town on a snow plow.
Ulysses continues alone and makes his way back to the sheriff’s office, where he is trapped by local bar owner Moira (Headey), a resident whom Ulysses had befriended the previous day.
The former sheriff’s daughter Alex (McLeod) intervenes and shoots Moira before she can kill Ulysses.
Ulysses then deputizes Alex, and the two join forces to handle both the town and the impending Yakuza.
After these events, Ulysses directs Alex to place C-4 explosives in the bank vault.
He then uses the explosives as leverage to force a deal with the remaining townspeople, deputies, and the lone Yakuza security guard.
The town is isolated by a snowstorm, a power outage, and a lack of cell service, preventing outside contact.
Overall the movie is good at diffusing dark, tense moments with ironic humor and action – which makes it.
That being said, if you get squeamish with on-screen street fights with high body counts and modern shoot-outs that remind me of the western flicks of yore – this movie is right up your alley and I hope you enjoy it!
