The Baker (II) (2022) User Reviews

A good movie for a single viewing

[FeastMode · 6/10 · 28 July 2023]

I'm a fan of Ron Pearlman. I've seen him in so many movies and love him in Sons of Anarchy. I'm glad to see him get a leading movie role, and his performance does not disappoint. The more surprising development is child actress Emma Ho somehow matching his performance, especially when much of this movie rides on her shoulders.

The Baker is mostly well-made and does a good job investing you in the characters. They add in little details, moments, and actions that may seem inconsequential to the story but make both lead characters so endearing. And it doesn't feel randomly inserted, but rather a natural part of the story and characters.

The fight scenes are the only thing holding this back from crossing the threshold between good and great; from being something I rewatch. And I don't think it's the fault of the director. I don't know how to say this without sounding mean, but Ron Pearlman is too old to perform convincing fight scenes. It's the Liam Neeson effect.

The reason I don't think it's the directors fault is a fight scene early on that doesn't involve Pearlman. It's a good scene and got me excited. When Pearlman has a fight scene, there are five cuts per second (no exaggeration) to mask the unconvincing choreography. It's hard to watch, metaphorically and literally.

In another fight scene involving Pearlman, there are no cuts for about two minutes. But the scene is intentionally shadowy and never once shows Pearlman's face. It's clearly a stunt double the entire time. And because it's so dark, it's difficult to see the fight itself. It could have been a cool one-take scene if they didn't have to film it in the dark.

I still had a good time with this movie but I doubt I'd watch it again. I think most people will enjoy it, at least mildly. It's definitely better than most streaming movie garbage. (1 viewing, opening Thursday 7/27/2023)

solid B

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 20 November 2023]

Pappi (Ron Perlman) is the baker. His estranged no-good son Peter (Joel David Moore) shows up out of nowhere with mute daughter Delphi (Emma Ho). Peter had stolen from Vic (Elias Koteas) and mob boss Merchant (Harvey Keitel) is not happy.

This is part John Wick and part Léon: The Professional. It's got the extended continuous fight action. It is a simple story. Ron Perlman is always a dominating presence. It's a simple role for him. It also has some great actors filling out the cast. The girl is pretty cute and being mute does limit the possibility of failure. It all adds up to a solid B-movie.

Rock solid acting performance! So cool, calm and collected!

[imseeg · 7/10 · 6 August 2023]

The good: a terrific acting performance by Ron Perlman, who elevates this straightforward gangster story to a much higher level. The man oozes COOL. Gotta see it to believe it.

Although there is another terrific actor (Harvey Keitel) starring, we unfortunately dont get to see him much. But the few minutes that he enters the stage, he is full on COOL as well. Ah, how I do love these rock solid acting legends.

More good: this is a solidly directed gangster movie, with good photography and a pounding music score. Special praise for playing Iggy Pop's Lust for Life album! :)

Any bad? The story has some credibility flaws, that just about prevent me from rating it with 8 stars though...

This story is about a former gangster turned baker (Ron Perlman), whose son stole drugs from the wrong kind of gangsters (Harvey Keitel). His son gets wacked pretty early on into the movie, but his mute daughter survives the assasination and flees with the drugs and then goes along with gangster Ron Perlman on a killing spree.

THIS storyline with that kid is the part with which I have some troubles concerning the credibility. Not a huge problem, but still, the plot could have been a bit more streamlined for credibility issues.

Recommended watch for those who are into the cool, calm and collected gangster stories. The acting doesnt come much better than this. Bravo!

Man Looking For His Son

[stevendbeard · 7/10 · 30 July 2023]

I saw The Baker, starring Ron Pearlman-Nightmare Alley, Sons of Anarky_tv; Elias Koteas-Chicago P. D._tv, Let Me In; Joel David Moore-the Avatar movies, Bones_tv and Emma Ho-Rosie's Rules_tv, The Expanse_tv.

This is a nice little action movie about a man looking for his son. Joel plays an estranged man-from his father, Ron. Ron has been having a lot of bad dreams lately, because of his time in the military when he had to kill lots of people. Joel hasn't seen Ron in years but suddenly shows up and wants Ron to watch his daughter, Emma, for a little while so he can take care of some personal business. Joel came across a bag of drugs after witnessing a drug deal gone bad-none of the participants in the deal survived-and Joel wants to sell them. The only problem is that Emma switched bags with her dad and didn't tell him. Elias is the drug boss' enforcer that is trying to find the drugs after Joel disappears. Ron takes Emma with him in search of Joel and they keep crossing paths with Elias' men. The bad guys keep underestimating Ron the baker-remember, he used to kill a lot of people before he started baking-and the police are not far behind, trying to put a stop to all the killing.

It's rated R for violence, language and drug use and has a running time of 1 hour & 44 minutes.

It's not a big budget film but I enjoyed it and it would be a good one to stream.

Very Good Thriller!

[martimusross · 6/10 · 17 November 2023]

The Baker

We had a blistering start to the movie, what a beginning. Ron Perlman just oozed menace and Joel David Moore (Norm from Avatar) turned out a class act, albeit brief.

As a movie this was a page turner, it was script light and heavy on the action. In short it was a great thriller and yes, we had a few scenes that stretched credulity, but overall it was gripping.

I am not sure why some "critics" on here can't see the simple joy in this story about a grandfather protecting his family that was very well done, not to mention the great direction and great music.

I'm giving this a firm 6 outta 10 for a strong entertaining movie.

Nova is pink

[staunton-gary · 6/10 · 17 September 2023]

When the movie started, I was thinking to myself that it kind of felt familiar. It was almost like somebody had binged watched some early Steven Seagal movies like Above the Law (1988) and Hard to Kill (1990), and then thought up this story. Wasn't bad, just a little slow. The action wasn't that bad, Ron Perlman aka The Baker, did a reasonable job portraying his character. Old school baddie, Harvey Keitel was his usual self and matched his character too. Vic (Elias Koteas) played the tortured number two. If you are expecting a movie similar to Taken (2008) or the fast action of Liam Neeson, you won't find it here.

Overall, a solid above average movie. I would recommend at least one watch.

Not Terrible.

[silverpinkcity · 6/10 · 21 January 2024]

I watched this movie all the way through, which nowadays...is something! It's not great and it's not terrible. Something in between, which I guess explains my score of "6." As someone else already said, it's good to watch once.

I think Ron Pearlman does a decent acting job in this. He is believable in the part. In the movie, he is trying to find his "bad guy" son who has abandoned his little girl (Ron Pearlman's granddaughter) with the Ron Pearlman character at his bakery.

Now of course, Ron Pearlman, a retired gangster, has no experience with children, and didn't even know he had a granddaughter. To add a weird twist, the little girl (of about eight, who loves sparkly unicorns) does not speak...and hasn't spoken since her mother died.

Okay, so there we have our plot. It's sort of cliche, but that's what we've got. Most of the movie takes place between Ron Pearlman and the little girl...with some assorted bad guys tossed in and a female cop. Anyway, I feel the movie would have been more interesting if the little girl had talked. Then there could have been some "back and forth" between the Ron Pearlman character and the girl which would have added more personality and maybe even a little humor to the movie.

They probably didn't want the hassle of needing the girl to memorize lines or whatever, so they took the easy way out and just made her a temporary mute. So yea...I think that would have made the movie a lot more interesting if she just TALKED!

Anyway, like I said, the movie is okay. It's watchable, it's easy to follow and understand (which nowadays, is saying a lot). So...watch it once, that's my advice. Don't expect too much. But it does have some cute moments, along with some action (if that's what you're into)!

the sleep maker

[talllwoood13 · 4/10 · 22 November 2023]

The trailer made this movie look way better than it does so whoever did the trailer needs a promotion to make this movie look as good as it did. On one hand this movie was well written. The use of welders goggles. How the daughter is the way she is and it works much better than the child actor in Last Action Hero with Arnold Schwarzenegger or similar. However Ron Perlman is too old for this role I think. He still has that charisma as he brings to all his other projects but that's about it. I found he had the right look but he was out of shape. I get it he's in his 70s but I still would have cast someone else.

How the baker finds everything out is too easy, I'm not expecting riddles to be solved or any of that but the second he goes into the night club and a certain hospital scene without ruining anything they seem to have dumbed it way down. There were a few fights but not as many as I would have wanted. Thankfully no huge gun fights or anything.

I would have got the writers to work a little harder on this. Especially since no adult actors are in this I really gave a crap about. One actor from a tv series Forever and the last thing I saw Ron in that was any good was Sons Of Anarchy.

What's with the Granddaughter?

[analyticconcepts · 6/10 · 23 January 2024]

You have a character probability around twelve years of age who is mute, has been attending a special school and is totally incapable of communication. She doesn't write out notes, she doesn't use sign language. I guess it's easier to hire an actress who doesn't have to do anything other than makfaces and act out. This simple fact makes the movie lose both points and credibility for reality. The basic storyline of revenge and protection of family is not bad, but the detractors make it hard to watch at times. Could have been much better if the granddaughters character was more believable over the course of the story.

An elderly baker well played by veteran Ron Perlman attempts to protect his granddaughter from gangsters.

[ma-cortes · 5/10 · 10 March 2024]

"The Baker" centers on a quiet, lonely man , Pappi (Ron Perlman) whose estranged son (Joel David Moore) suddenly comes back into his life with a granddaughter (Emma Ho). He never knew existed, then he must do everything he can to protect her from the mob hitman, Vic (Elias Koteas), sent by ruthless mobster chief Merchant (Harvey Keitel) to find her. When his son disappears on a shady business opportunity, the solitary baker must do everything he can to find his son, and he'll stop at nothing and at whatever price. Together, the baker and the little girl must avoid corrupt people, contract killers and the mob to survive and at all costs.

Thrilling and nail-biting movie with noisy action, shootouts , spectacular scenes, strong fights, violence and amazing finale . Action thriller loaded with violence in which Ron Perlman plays a baker tormented by his past who sees his life change when his missing son disappears due to a nasty business, now the baker must do everything possible to find him and protect his granddaughter from the mafia hitmen sent to look for him. It pits a dark, sinister, explosively violent world, filled with murders, against the gravitational forces of long forgotten loved ones. There is a beautiful relationship between the grandfather and the mute granddaughter -that bears remarkable resemblance to ¨Luc Besson's The Professional¨- the latter notably played by Emma Ho, despite her novice in interpretive art.

In addition to Ron Perlman who gives a stunning interpretation making its reluctant hero do anything to protect the innocent , the cast includes two heavyweights such as Harvey Keitel (¨Pulp Fiction¨) , Elias Koteas, (¨Angels and Demons¨, ¨Chicago P. D.¨) and adding Joel David Moore (¨Avatar¨). This slow-moving and some boring motion picture was professionally directed by Jonathan Sobol, though with no originality, because the matter of the story, we had already seen it before and better in other films. Sobol has directed a few movies with uneven success, such as: ¨A Beginner's Guide to Endings¨, ¨The Art of the Steal¨, ¨Young Drunk Punk¨ and ¨The Padre¨. Rating: 5.5/10. Average but acceptable and passable.

Fairly entertaining stuff

[latinfineart · 7/10 · 27 December 2023]

This film was fun. Perlman was a joy to watch, as usual. Though the plot may have been a little bit formulaic, it still worked.

In director Jonathan Sobol's "The Baker", Ron Perlman plays the title role. Donald Gilroy (Perlman) owns Pappi's Bake Shop, and Sobol's camera captures our culinary hero kneading dough quite serenely.

However, Don has a secret, violent past, where he was surrounded by enough guns to recognize when a .38 caliber is fired just by listening to the shot. Well, his peaceful existence in the food industry is disrupted when his son Pete (Joel David Moore) witnesses a bloody and lethal clash between drug dealers. Pete leaves with a gym back full of drugs, the latest rage called Pink, but the head dealers want the sack of narcotics back. Pete is an absolute idiot. The son is sketched out as an total moron. I can see why dad abandoned him. I would too.

Perlman's presence was really all you need, he plays a bad ass very well. That face alone convinces us. The direction was decent, the girl was cute, and the plot was good enough. Not a great film but not a bad film, fairly entertaining.

Dark scenes

[exfiltrator · 4/10 · 19 September 2023]

May as well try to watch a podcast.

The 4 stars are for what little I could discern of the acting.

This movie exemplifies my decision, made only this morning, to waste no more of my time on modern movies.

Happily I have a comprehensive library going back decades. Should keep me entertained until my last breath.

My review too short. No problem.

May as well try to watch a podcast.

The 4 stars are for what little I could discern of the acting.

This movie exemplifies my decision, made only this morning, to waste no more of my time on modern movies.

Happily I have a comprehensive library going back decades. Should keep me entertained until my last breath.

My review too short. No problem.

May as well try to watch a podcast.

The 4 stars are for what little I could discern of the acting.

This movie exemplifies my decision, made only this morning, to waste no more of my time on modern movies.

Happily I have a comprehensive library going back decades. Should keep me entertained until my last breath.

My review too short. No problem.

Perlman is predictable

[jchaconcr · 1/10 · 20 August 2023]

Just another predictable movie with average talent. Hollywood just keeps pumping average or below average movies out like a cookie cutter. Thanks to regal for the unlimited movie pass or I would want a refund on 70% of the movies I view.

Just another predictable movie with average talent. Hollywood just keeps pumping average or below average movies out like a cookie cutter. Thanks to regal for the unlimited movie pass or I would want a refund on 70% of the movies I view.

Just another predictable movie with average talent. Hollywood just keeps pumping average or below average movies out like a cookie cutter. Thanks to regal for the unlimited movie pass or I would want a refund on 70% of the movies I view.

appalling

[squintykids · 1/10 · 13 November 2023]

I'm not a fan of Ron Pearlman but will watch almost anything with an open mind. I take each movie as a book waiting to be opened.

This has to be one of the worst movies I've seen this year.

One star, a 'C' movie...as in don't see.

The plot is ridiculous,saying that it has more holes than Swiss cheese is an insult to cheese.

It's a bare mesh linking the the title outline, Its devoid of character quite amazingly wooden.

Spolier..drug deal gone wrong?

Read spurious actions over a small quantity of drugs.

I really struggle to fathom six stars let alone the eight and ten star ratings, I'm not sure if we watched the same movie.

One On One with Ron Pearlman

[subxerogravity · 8/10 · 30 July 2023]

A nice gritty cliche about an old man whose past does not reflect what he's doing now until he's forced to go on a road trip with his granddaughter who he just met to find his astray son who got himself into a mess.

Pearlman plays it like a champ, giving a great performance and even better action sequences. It's like he's trying out for the new Expendables movie as he pulls off these cool combat sequences where he's facing bad guys one at a time, which makes sense because The Hellboy star has to be 70 years old, and it would have been unrealistic if he was battling 20 at a time.

It a good watch with an interesting leading man able to hold my interest for the entire time. Thumbs up!

Good effort

[NateWatchesCoolMovies · 5/10 · 6 January 2024]

Ron Perlman is The Baker, a literal baker who was once some kind of special forces badass and jumps back into action when his limo driver son (Joel David Moore) is murdered by vicious mobsters. It's familiar territory in the action genre; usually guys like Steven Seagal or Jason Statham go in for this sort of thing but it's refreshing to see a fantastic character actor like Ron, usually sidelined in smaller roles, get a front and centre action lead. He has good chemistry with his now orphaned granddaughter (Emma Ho) he must look after and some well acted scenes with the bad guys, both the head mafioso (Harvey Keitel) and his put-upon lieutenant (always nice to see Elias Koteas). I wish I had better things to say about the film as a whole because the intention is there, but the execution ends up being pretty sloppy and doesn't really flow from scene to scene. It's a shame because Perlman is terrific, there's a really stirring score and some genuinely effective cinematic moments. It's just not consistent enough though, which ends up being really frustrating.

Nothing Special

[patrickhenry-58293 · 4/10 · 15 February 2024]

This was ok. Could have been better without so much of the kid. I get that she is part of the story, fine, but why make her such an annoying little B and give her so much screen time? Oh, and she doesnt speak....thats always nice and really makes for good viewing. NOT.

The story is nothing new, but its simple enough to work....loser gets in trouble with some bad guys, family gets dragged in, blah blah blah.

Perlman is as good as expected. Koteas and Keitel the same. No real substance here, a few jumps and gaps, some weird over character development with Koteas, but just a decent action crime gig. Nothing I'd ever watch again.

Anyone rating this over 5 is an idiot.

[graves-scott · 3/10 · 20 January 2024]

Look. Ron Pearlman is a great actor. No doubt. But he's old. Too old for believable action hero stuff. Sure he fights smarter and the young bucks don't expect him to be that tough but still, it's just not believable.

The interaction between him and the girl is cute and the storyline isn't bad but it just doesn't gel as an amazing movie. It's worth maybe a 5 if you really enjoyed it but nothing higher. I was whelmed. But no where near what a better made movie would have done. If you were overwhelmed by this movie you need to get your meds checked, seriously.

I think it's time for Ron to stick with voice work.

Perlman Wows!

[akira-hideyo · 8/10 · 24 August 2023]

I don't even understand how this movie can rank below a minimum of 8 in review ratings. Ron Perlman is way underrated as the real man's man of what a strong, silent, no nonsense real hero should be. Not withstanding in this movie, a dream fantasy grandfather or father any kid would be proud to a part of that bloodline. The plot may seem straight forward predictable but it's the flow of a good movie and it's great talent that elevates this from mediocre. RP character doesn't need lots of stunt work to get the message across or work done. Guess it's his many years as a veteran artiste professional that commands an implied presence that requires no words. Like the bread that he bakes, he more than rose to the crunch. 🍞👍🙏👌😋👏🎊💐

This action/thriller may feel familiar with elements borrowed from various sources

[chandu_bu · 8/10 · 1 August 2023]

This action/thriller may feel familiar with elements borrowed from various sources, but its likable cast keeps things engaging with their charm and charisma. The Baker cleverly combines bits from John Wick, Aliens, and The Professional, placing the right elements in the right places to provide an enjoyable experience, even if it doesn't introduce anything groundbreaking. Perlman's portrayal as a fighter is believable, showcasing his human side with vulnerability after a fight, and his bonding with young Emma Ho's character, Delphi, is heartwarming. Keitel's portrayal of the crime lord exudes calm menace, while Koteas' Vic becomes a tragic figure. The film leaves room for a possible sequel, and with intriguing characters, that prospect seems promising.

RON PERLMAN DELIVERS!!!

[edenall · 8/10 · 30 July 2023]

Thoroughly enjoyed the movie from start to finish. All the actors were believable and the action kept me glued to the screen. The relationship of the grandfather and granddaughter serves to give the grandfather a chance at making a past memory with his son a chance for redemption. It was engaging from the beginning and the characters had dimensions. A bit of fighting action and plenty of violence, too! Don't let that scare you away, just concentrate on the story. The story has been done before, but with Ron Perlman's and the supporting cast's acting, it' is still entertaining and satisfying. If you're looking for a movie which will definitely be underseen and underrated, see The Baker! You' ll be glad you did!

This movie was so good I had to make a review. I don't really usually review movies unless they're terrible or amazing.

[eprusulis · 8/10 · 1 August 2023]

First, Ron Perlman and Emma Ho deliver phenomenal. Their chemistry was incredible for Emma to have to ask without talking and she does a phenomenal job, showing her emotions and showing the type of person she is without saying a word through 3/4 of the movie Ron Perlman. This was one of his best. I've loved one Perlman forever since he was on Sons of Anarchy, but I thought this movie was well written well acted and it was my first saw about it. I thought it was gonna be another one of those you know father protects daughter from or grandfathered text Door granddaughter from a bunch of thugs who come to the house? I kind of liked the way. They did it on this one one of the great things about Ron for woman is one minute he could be a jerk and then the next minute he's a big softy even with Emma so one moment in the movie he's yelling at her and then another moment in the movie is consoling her almost to the point where he's building, a better relationship with her than her own father.

Ron Perlman delivers the goods!

[ykjdh · 10/10 · 27 July 2023]

How Ron Perlman never became a box office action hero is a mystery. Physically, he can hold his own against the old school guys of Stallone and Van Damme and he's a much better actor too. I first saw him in the tv series Beauty and the Beast where he shined every Friday night.

Fast forward over 30 years later and he's tearing up the big screen as a quiet, retired grumpy old man who finds out he's got a grand daughter he never knew existed. The mystery here is why all the sudden does his son want to be a part of his life now?? He's a character that embodies where action stars go when they get old. In between ben-gay ointments and icing bruises, they still got it but in his case, he'd rather bake pastries.

The movie comes across as your typical action flick but it offers something more. It's actually a pretty decent, feel good movie with a message about how precious life really is. The Baker is a character who's not forgiving for being a pretty bad dude, and he's certainly done his share of hurting people. Still, is there a possibility of redemption here for him? At about 105 minutes with some decent performances from a good supporting cast action movie fans will get an old school, kick butt, action movie.

Perlman delivers, story fits the bill

[solipsist_in_a_cloud · 8/10 · 11 February 2024]

I like Ron Perlmans performance in general, thus I was intrigued by this movie. He can combine the gentle person with violence. It is amazing to see how he interacts with his granddaughter on one side and be so violent on the other side. But in addition, there comes the issue of age, some unresolved history that is not fully revealed. All key persons are really old, making this not a common action movie, but adding some tiredness to it. The main persons show on different ways that they are not happy with the violence and deaths they caused. It is just a means to what has to be done.

But the contrast to finding peace with his own family by taking care of his very special granddaughter is the main reason to watch this movie. I did expect a lot with Ron Perlman being the main actor and I was not disappointed.

Strangely

[tchitouniaram · 8/10 · 17 September 2023]

Enough But I really enjoyed this film! Ron Perlman for me was always a brilliant support actor, not main character , so it is a pleasant surprise that he is definitely capable of delivering the action old fashioned way !!!Very decent one time watch !

600???((( enough But I really enjoyed this film! Ron Perlman for me was always a brilliant support actor, not main character , so it is a pleasant surprise that he is definitely capable of delivering the action old fashioned way !!!Very decent one time watch !enough But I really enjoyed this film! Ron Perlman for me was always a brilliant support actor, not main character , so it is a pleasant surprise that he is definitely capable of delivering the action old fashioned way !!!Very decent one time watch !