Watching a Mel Gibson film these days feels deliciously outré, like you’re doing something naughty.
Unfortunately, I also find that most of his post scandal works are of middling to low quality. “On The Line” continues that tradition.
Gibson plays a talkshow host named Elvis Cooney who is an unlikable jerk. Obviously the choice of his casting is an ironic meta commentary of sorts. (At several points, the movie winks and acknowledges that it is a movie.) Elvis is presented as something like a talk show therapist – a guy who is helping people with their problems – but was occasionally referred to as being a shock shock, like Howard Stern. That incongruity was never resolved.
Early in the film, Elvis arrives for his midnight shift at a radio station. He soon gets a call from an irate audience member who threatens Elvis’s family. Things escalate from there, leading to a “Die Hard” style cat and mouse adventure through the radio station’s office building.
The dialogue felt very forced and expository. My wife noted accurately that Gibson didn’t seem to be emoting very well.
I’m a fan of plot twists, and the film has several big ones, though they come at somewhat unexpected places. (I guess twists can’t be expected, but you’ll get what I mean if you see it.) I found them unsatisfying. For one thing, they turn plot holes that were minor gaps into gaping maws.
It’s not a terrible film, but certainly not a great one. It’s basically on par with your average episode of television.
The intro scene was nicely done, setting up a situation as one thing and then revealing it to be something else entirely. In some ways hints at the ending.
Best line: What kind of b-grade movie bullshit is this?
