Bacon Sandwich. Hmmm... Bacon

Yeah, Kevin Bacon that is. Why is Kevin Bacon so popular? Well, firstly he's a very good, versatile actor and secondly I think people see in his performances a recognisable 'everyman' that they can associate with and feel empathy for. Last weekend I had the pleasure of sitting down and watching two of his recent films on DVD, the entertaining Death Sentence and the gripping The Woodsman...

Death Sentence (2007). Talented Saw Director James Wan is a busy man, last year he also wrote and directed the fun Ventriloquist Doll/Ghosthouse movie Dead Silence and managed to fit in his production duties on the Saw sequels.

For Death Sentence he has revamped the old Death Wish vigilante story for today's popcorn audience. Kevin Bacon plays Nick Hume, a hard working business and family man. Mr everyman. One night his life is ripped apart when one of his sons is killed by a gang holding up a gas station. Of course the scumbag who pulled the trigger doesn't get the justice that is deserved and a distraught Nick decides to take revenge.

From this point on the violence and threat to his wife and remaining son escalates. Death Sentence is a very violent film, which I don't have a problem with, but maybe the exciting action sequences go a little too far towards the end of the film, becoming cartoonish and unrealistic. Director Wan adds some fun but fairly unsubtle nods to other movies, the most obvious being Taxi Driver, and I'm sure there's a taste of the Blade Runner cat and mouse building chase and a big dose of John Woo in the final scene set in the chapel of an abandoned mental hospital.

Kevin Bacon gives a good performance, such that it blows away Charles Bronson's character in the original Death Wish. There's one unfortunate, overly sentimental, scene though where Nick (head bloodied and heavily bandaged) blubs his feelings to his comatose son (who can't hear him). It made me laugh and I don't think it was meant to. I don't think it was Kevin's acting that was at fault but rather a bad choice by the writer and director. There was no need for it. Sometimes less is more. Despite this brief blip I'd recommend Death Sentence for fans of violent revenge action flicks.

The Woodsman (2004) is a totally different viewing experience. Bacon plays a convicted paedophile, Walter, who is released after 12 years in prison and tries to settle back into society.

Walter moves into an apartment across the street from a school and is tormented by the temptation he sees outside his window. He gets a simple factory job and lives in fear of his past being discovered. He manages to form a relationship with fellow worker Vickie (Kyra Sedgwick) that provides some comfort, but can Walter cope with the shame and stress he feels or will he succumb to his distasteful desires and offend again?

A Detective (Mos Def) who is keeping tabs on him thinks the latter, however Vickie believes that Walter has the strength within to lead a normal life. One day Walter follows a young schoolgirl to local park and starts to talk to her...

Given the subject matter, it must have been hard to get this movie made. It was a brave move by Bacon to take on the role of a child molester, but it pays off. His performance is riveting. Such is the intensity and sensitivity that you feel both sympathy and abhorrence towards his character. The Woodsman is at times uncomfortable to watch. It is a challenging but ultimately rewarding experience.