Neve Campbell and Dwayne Johnson star in the edge-of-your-seat action drama Skyscraper. Photo: Universal Pictures International.
By Matthew Lau
Global icon Dwayne Johnson stars in Skyscraper as the death-defying protagonist Will Sawyer.
Universal Pictures and Legendary Pictures have teamed up to produce an intense action-thriller that is not for the faint-hearted.
Will is a former FBI Hostage Rescue Team leader and US war veteran whose life is turned upside-down after negotiations in a hostage situation fail.
Ten years later, Will has reformed his life as a family man; married to Sarah (Neve Campbell), the naval surgeon who saved his life, with their eight-year-old twins Georgina (McKenna Roberts) and Henry (Noah Cottrell).
Despite losing a leg as a result of the fateful incident, Will remains positive as he confesses to a friend: “Funny thing is, without that bad luck I never would’ve met Sarah, never would’ve had my kids. I love them with all my heart”.
Will has traded in his weapons to become a private contractor as a safety and security assessor, and is given the mammoth tasked of advising the corporate sector of The Pearl in Hong Kong, the world’s tallest building at 225 storeys and more than 3500 feet high.
The revolutionary building – dubbed “the eighth wonder of the world” – is the brainchild of billionaire Chinese software developer Zhao Long Ji (Ng Chin Han).
“Welcome to Heaven, Mr Sawyer”, Zhao says as he uses his technology to make the penthouse floor becomes transparent to reveal the beautiful city below them.
The plot picks up as a powerful crime syndicate pulls off its well-crafted scheme to set ablaze part of the high-rise building where Will’s wife and children are trapped.
Because what happens when you create a spectacle like that in this evil world? Answer: it becomes a target for a terror attack.
As seen in the movie poster and trailer, Will takes a leap of faith, desperately attempting to climb The Pearl, with the odds stacked against him as man with a prosthetic leg who has already taken multiple knocks.
Will’s life falls apart in front of his eyes in distressing fashion in a storyline that contains several twists and turns.
Pro-life themes and strong family values are prevalent throughout the film as Will is a man who goes above and beyond out of love for his family.
“He has my daughter, her life is worth more than mine,” he boldly states when the chips are down.
Sarah holds her own as a sharp-minded character who is far more than just a damsel in distress
Some jaw-dropping moments are terrifying to watch for those who, like me, have a fear of heights.
Skyscraper is highly cliché in the action genre scheme of things, however, it is done in an entertaining, though at times farfetched, fashion.
A police tablet that depicts Will’s bio states that he is from the city of Rockville, a subtle nod perhaps to Dwayne Johnson’s wrestling persona as “The Rock” in WWE.
This film is rated PG-13 for sequences of gun violence and action, and for brief strong language.