"Damage" Movie Trailer Review

By our guest blogger, Jeremy Wilkinson

“Damage” is the second attempt by Steve Austin (of WWE fame) to prove himself as a lead actor. He was decent enough as a supporting character in “The Longest Yard,” but his role in “The Condemned” was underwhelming. If Austin wants to have staying power, he’ll have to learn how to carry a film and not rely on the fan base from his wrestling days.

The latest trailer for “Damage” sets up the premise: John Brickner (Austin) did something to wind up in jail. It seems that before he went to jail, something he did got some woman’s husband killed and this woman has a child who has some disease--or something like that. The trailer doesn’t give any specifics on what John did or did not do. To make the money (in an attempt to make amends), John begins to participate in underground fighting matches.

“Damage” seems like it will be an average action movie. The trailer didn’t show much in the way of exposition, focusing instead on the fighting. It looks like the fights are going for a visceral approach. There are no Jet Li-esque maneuvers, just straight up brawling. The fights look like they could be serviceable, no-nonsense action. What little story was shown could easily become clunky, existing solely as a means to get Austin beating other men into a pulp . But, you go see an action movie for the action, so that’s not a huge mark against it.

The one thing that really stood out as negative was the narration for the trailer. It’s not needed to get the premise across. The voice narrating the trailer is the same voice used for WWE promos and it almost feels like a WWE promo because of that. The last bit of the trailer claims “Damage” came out on DVD and Blu-Ray on October 5th, yet the Web site claims it will be in theaters soon. If that was a mistake, it’s a pretty glaring oversight that should have been caught.

“Damage” looks like it’s shaping up to be a lukewarm action movie. If you keep your expectations low, it’ll probably be more enjoyable. Not many wrestlers have successfully transitioned to the big screen, so Austin has his work cut out for him.


Check out the trailer for "Damage" below. Thoughts?