November 7, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES III & IV • Page 17 Early November brings lots of action releases by Dennis Seuling “Fire with Fire” (Lionsgate) follows firefighter Jeremy Coleman (Josh Duhamel) who, at the end of a rough day, decides to have a drink with his coworkers. When Jeremy enters a liquor store to buy some more alcohol, he witnesses the clerk being murdered by Hagan (Vincent D’Onofrio), a white supremacist, and narrowly escapes with his life. Police detective Mike Cella (Bruce Willis) takes an interest in the case. Hagan is arrested, Jeremy identifies him in a lineup, and Hagan vows to have Jeremy killed before trial. Jeremy must give up his career to be placed in the witness protection program, but finds some comfort in his attraction to, and developing relationship with, U.S. Marshal Talia Durham (Rosario Dawson). The movie’s strength is putting an average Joe in the midst of an ever-escalating set of dangerous circumstances. Duhamel is effective as an Everyman who happens to walk into the wrong place at the wrong time. D’Onofrio incorporates a lot of unsettling mannerisms that underscore Hagan’s lethal personality. Murder is not an action Hagan has to mull over; it comes naturally to him. D’Onofrio sells this homicidal behavior perfectly. The R-rated Blu-ray release contains director and cast commentary, deleted scenes, extended interviews with cast and crew, and a making-of featurette. “Maximum Conviction” (Anchor Bay) is an action thriller teaming two veterans of the genre. When experienced black ops operative Tom Steele (Steven Seagal) and his partner, Manning (Steve Austin), are assigned to decommission an old prison, they must oversee the arrival of two mysterious female prisoners. Before long, an elite Vincent D’Onofrio (left) and Bruce Willis in a scene from the action drama, ‘Fire with Fire.’ force of mercenaries attacks the prison in search of the new arrivals. When the true identities of the women are revealed, Steele realizes he is caught in the middle of a situation far bigger and far more dangerous than he imagined. Action flicks are fine when they have a point or, better still, a decent script. “Maximum Conviction” has neither. It has non-stop action, but it is cliché-ridden and tired. Viewers have seen this kind of movie before, and nothing new is offered. Seagal and Austin are not exactly the dream team to draw audiences. At best, they are mediocre performers trying to capitalize on past glory: Seagal as an actor and Austin as a professional wrestler. Blu-ray bonus features include audio commentary, a behind-the-scenes featurette, and an interview with Austin. “Robot and Frank” (Samuel Goldwyn) takes place in the near future when robots can serve as health care assistants for the elderly and infirm. Former petty burglar Frank (Frank Langella), aging and alone, has the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Partly to avoid a weekly 10-hour round trip and partly to stop rekindling old resentments, Frank’s son, Hunter, brings his father a gift: a robot that will take care of Frank, do household chores, and make sure Frank takes care of himself. Initially resistant to this intrusion, Frank discovers that the robot can give him a new, exciting life if he draws upon its supercomputer “brain” and trains it to be a partner in burglaries. Langella, an actor who has had more than his share of roles as an endearing curmudgeon, is in top form here. He develops believable screen chemistry with the unnamed (continued on Crossword page)