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‘Next of Kin’ stars Patrick
Swayze, Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Ben Stiller and Liam Neeson (what a great
relief to go through the credits and find Neeson’s name – it was bugging me
the whole movie).
Swayze gives probably one of his
best performances playing Truman, a city cop from ‘the hills’. When a man in
Truman’s large hick family (one of their ‘kin’) is killed, any and every man
in the family avenges his death.
Years later, Truman’s brother
Gerald (Paxton) gets caught up with the mafia and is murdered. At Gerald’s
funeral Truman’s family decide they must seek revenge. They send the eldest
brother, Bryer (Neeson) to avenge Gerald’s death the way that their kin have
been doing for years – ‘an eye for an eye’.
With Truman being a cop the
conflict between the two brothers is set. Truman pursues the killers in the
‘right way’ and Bryer in the wrong way (the ‘hills way’). Bryer’s search for
the killers leads him in the right direction, but with Truman right on his
trail he can’t get too far.
The search for Gerald’s killers
goes on until both his entire family and the mafia family are drawn in. With
superior intellect and hunting skills, Truman’s family appear to have the
upper hand in their war against the mafia. The mafia, on the other hand,
boast superior firepower, making this a bloody conflict.
This is a good movie you’re in
the mood for eighties action. It’s better than the majority of action films
made in this era.
However, the DVD portion of the
movie isn’t flash at all. ‘Next of Kin’ may as well have stayed on VHS. With
no extras and just as good quality as any VHS tape, this isn’t DVD worthy. If
you are having trouble getting it on VHS, DVD is your only choice.
The DVD version is not an
upgrade in sound or picture quality from the VHS, so merely retaining the
first generation of the film is worthwhile. If you like the movie, don’t
hesitate to buy it. It’s still a good buy, though not one of the best in my
collection.
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