Hammer (2019) User Reviews

It left me wanting more which must be a good thing.

[valleyjohn · 7/10 · 2 June 2020]

Hammer is a really interesting film about family and how far you will go to stick by the ones you love . A father faces a personal crisis when he discovers his estranged son fleeing a botched drug deal. The two men try to undo the mess they are in but the more they try the more trouble they get in .

This is a pretty good little film. Not only is is entertaining, the acting is really good . I love watching Will Patton anyway but the standout performance is definitely from Mark O'Brian who plays the son , Chris .

It's pretty violent but not gratuitous and you can't help but get caught up in the situation they find themselves in. It's a good crime film that's all about family and loyalty.

It has a good ending too and it left me wanting more which must be a good thing .

Hard to believe

[fmwongmd · 5/10 · 14 November 2020]

Many of the sequences and plot gyrations are unbelievable with a slurry of loose ends which leave you guessing.

Great Indie Thriller Drama

[deshaver1 · 7/10 · 6 June 2020]

Very surprised by this film. Wasn't expecting much, but really have respect for Will Patton and his ability to morph into any role. The story was very believable and the acting was involved and pretty driven. The standout role was by Mark O'Brian as Chris. Will Patton plays his father that gets dragged in to a dangerous situation that his estranged son has brought home. Good thriller that really has you rooting for the "good guys."

My faith has beeen restored in Indie films

[13SecondFilmReviews · 5 June 2020]

Exceptional acting and directing make this a must-see indie crime thriller. It's proof that every good film starts with a good script regardless of budget size. Will Patton was superb. The other unknowns all turned in riveting, believable performances. It's definitely Hammer time.

Dull And A Half Hours

[omendata · 3/10 · 28 June 2020]

Good acting as the other reviewer pointed out but its very slow and a pretty dismal effort due to the writing and brings nothing new to the silver screen! Pass on this one unless you have a high threshold for boredom!

fell asleep

[iamjamalwhite · 2/10 · 17 February 2021]

This started ok and got more and more boring. like they gave the actors an outline and said "ACT!" it doesn't work on any level. family disfunction in spades. won't be popular with Hollywood because only minorities are poor, didn't you know? if you can't sleep, turn this on

Cr#pper

[ArtVandelayImporterExporter · 1/10 · 10 December 2020]

Canadian Film Board under-writes a film about hopeless crackhead drug-dealing losers.

The only thing that held my interest was trying to figure out which b3mf3ck town in Ontario played host to the film shoot. There's that one street of houses that's supposed to represent, i think, a working class neighbourhood. But it's probably more like the last street in town to get built out. In 1914. Before the farm boys were sent off to fight the Hun.

One house was even for sale. Look for the blue/red/white ReMax sign. I wonder whether the vendor put that in their listing: For Sale. Decrepit house from 1914 featured in terrible film called Hammer.

Those corn fields sure were beautiful, though.

See, this is the only thing remotely interesting about this movie. Guessing its location.

Oh, and my Will Patton Cr@ppy Movie Indicator racks up another win. If Patton keeps this up, relatively late in his acting career, Oliver Platt will have to keep acting well past the mandatory age of retirement to preserve his status at the top of the Cr@ppy Movie Indicator checklist.

Hammer is a tasteful tale of a family's struggle for survival

[ryansparkes2 · 10/10 · 23 June 2020]

This movie really exposes some hard truths that many families face in a world where everyone is struggling to connect while trying to stay true to themselves. The beauty lies in those well placed calm moments, were we actually see parallels In our own lives and get to reflect on how the choices we make affect the ones we love.

Perfectly forgettable crime drama with messy plot and poorly written characters

[akcenat · 4/10 · 14 August 2020]

The generic script tackles some perplexing social issues, like the allure of drugs, but with a small movie budget, "Hammer" - as story itself - acknowledges how poverty and neglect lead to chaos. Due to the modest budget, this Canadian crime thriller becomes an old-fashioned drama which has the focus on the cast performances instead of much needed action. Film is unquestionably W. Patton's show who is here in a rare lead role, but it's just too bad that it couldn't have been in a better vehicle than this. Rest of the cast is average and uncharismatic. The whole story is one-dimensional and when the whole thing finally comes to an end, it will inspire little more than shrugs from most viewers. Ultimately, "Hammer" is a short movie (81 min), but it drags its feet getting to the sort of conclusion you see coming from a mile away. And, with no proper development of any character, they aren't particularly pleasant or agreeable, causing movie to become rather frustrating and dull viewing experience.

Rating: 4-

Waste of time

[bpysl · 2/10 · 3 February 2021]

Sat there n watch the whole movie just to see what's going to happen to the little brother who after him were Chris coming back flash back something nothing and where Chris after he got the bags did he help his brother nope nope nope don't like it is it a book or part two cause this just was a waste

Great film

[gilliandawe91 · 8/10 · 28 June 2020]

Really enjoyed this film. Great cinematography, great acting. I thought it had great pacing, and I thought the ending was great. A great film about family relationships wrapped in a crime thriller. Mark O'Brien was fantastic.

One of the Best

[meghowald · 9/10 · 29 June 2020]

One of the best character-driven films of 2019/2020 with subtly layered irony, haunting performances and great music. Emotional realism is at its best when easy transactions go sour and emotions erupt arriving at the point of no return. Graphic realism, which the Brits and Americans are allowed to capture so appallingly well, never makes it to our Canadian final cuts. Canadian censorship simply won't allow artists to work their magic, so their talent is tethered to a prescribed hemline mentality. Do we need hyper-graphic detail? Some viewers need it to satisfy their armchair blood lust. But in watching "Hammer" I was too busy sinking in the characters' terror, desperation, hopelessness and revenge to miss gory details. Incomparable performances.

Very good!

[haskel-72951 · 9/10 · 28 January 2024]

Fantastic little film. A tight, compact thriller that works on (mostly) every level. Will Patton does what he's been doing for so long now - he delivers a great performance in a complex role and does it in the most "everyday guy" way. The script is efficient and effective, it is exactly the right amount of action and family drama with dialogue that is actually believable. As Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com said, I believed every minute of it. The only negative, and it is really just me being selfish, is that it is too short. I would have enjoyed a little more backstory. That aside, it is absolutely worth a watch and Will Patton's performance from beginning to end is riveting.