Nerdly » ‘Sniper: G.R.I.T.’ Review

13th Oct2023

‘Sniper: G.R.I.T.’ Review

by Phil Wheat

Stars: Chad Michael Collins, Ryan Robbins, Luna Fujimoto, Josh Brener, Dennis Haysbert, Matthew Sim, Toshiji Takeshima, Eugenia Caruso, Marko Nikolic, Paul Kissaun | Written and Directed by Oliver Thompson

It’s hard to believe that of ALL the action franchises that have come and gone over the years that the Sniper series would still be going strong some thirty, yes THIRTY, years after the debut of the original film. Since that debut we’ve had ten films – this latest one, Sniper: G.R.I.T. included – all of which have adapted with the times yet have still managed to find a consistency that has kept audiences coming back time and again. It also helps that, since 2011’s fourth film Sniper: Reloaded, we’ve had a consistent lead in actor Chad Michael Collins, playing Brandon Beckett the son of Tom Berenger’s original lead Gunnery Sergeant Tom Beckett.

This time round Brandon Beckett is no longer flying solo, and is now a key part of the newly-formed Global Response & Intelligence Team – the G.R.I.T. of the film’s title – led by Colonel Stone (Dennis Haysbert). The film opens with Brandon and the G.R.I.T. travelling across the world to Malta, to infiltrate a terrorist cult led by the enigmatic Bubalo, and free one of Brandon’s old adversary’s turned allies, Yuki Mifune, aka Lady Death (this time round played brilliantly by series newcomer Luna Fujimoto)… But that’s only the beginning of this story.

And when I say the beginning of this story, that’s just the first twenty minutes of the movie!

The real crux of Sniper: G.R.I.T. is Lady Death. She’s been bugged by Dr. Zoric, someone she thought was an ally in Bubalo’s camp, and now everyone, in particular Lady Death’s father, who trained her in the ways of the assassin, Soshi Mifune and even a surviving devotee of Bubalo, wants the “Maltese Falcon,” a mobile device containing a GPS tracking code… for Yuki! Of course now Brandon and Zero have rescued her, she’s not the only one who’s being hunted.

Sniper: G.R.I.T. continues the dichotomy set up in the previous film(s) with Ryan Robbins’ Zero bringing in even more of his much-needed humour to a franchise which was once so dour that it sometimes became a chore to sit through the films – at least when there was no action on screen. If upping the humour marks out this film, there’s a bigger change here too. It would seem, given how this film plays out, that the Sniper franchise is set for one of the biggest modifications the series has undergone since the introduction of Chad Michael Collins’ Brandon Beckett… This film, and thus the franchise, now feels like it becoming more of a globe-trotting Mission Impossible style series – on a smaller budget of course – and I’m here for it.

The introduction of Josh Brener as Intelligence Pete and Dennis Haysbert as G.R.I.T.’s leader Colonel Stone brings a lot to this film too. Brener is always good, and a joy to watch no matter the role or the film; whilst Haysbert always manages to find the right space in a role where he can both act serious and bring some fun. The pair teaming together here feels very much like the dream-ups of the buddy-cop comedies of the 80s. Another win in my book!

Lighter and more fun, even when there’s wholesale slaughter on screen, than a number of previous entries in the Sniper series, Sniper: G.R.I.T. feels like a much-needed, and much-welcome departure from the series’ status quo and one that I hope leads to even more “team” adventures down the line; especially with this small G.R.I.T. crew – all of whom have great chemistry together!