Bad Times

Ayer's attempt to be rough, impactful, and vulgar at all costs perhaps works initially. Then Bale’s style, however perfectly acted, in which he tries to emulate the style of Mexican gangsters, becomes significantly irritating. The problem stems from the director/writer, whose mix of street gangster and personal testimony of a war-scarred veteran shatters into an obnoxiously chatty and overwrought routine. Hands off this one, you'll have much more fun playing "GTA: San Andreas." It’s on the same level in terms of ideas and yet you'll be in the thick of it at will, not for an annoying two hours. (12/10/2007)

I haven’t seen such a good move about nothing for a long time. Christian Bale’s Jim Davis is the best played, most unpleasant character of the past few years. He could probably manage to pull off a three-hour gaze into the mirror with style. His interpretation of the mental sale of this unstable, dumb, aggressive brute is an unforgettable experience. I believe there are countless people like that around. I have the misfortune to know one myself. Just a shame that the role played in this movie by my favorite, Freddy Rodriguez, didn’t suit him one little bit. Also the movie could easily have been a little shorter. But thank god for Bale - his incredible skill moved the entire movie along wonderfully... (19/02/2008)

Harsh Times has a huge advantage in its main character, who has such potential that it is a pity that an eight-part series did not come into being, which would further develop the story of the main character and his twisted motivation and fulfill the genre's possibilities. The problem is that the viewer is enticed by interesting characters and feels that a great crime drama is unfolding, only to find out that instead of a suspenseful crime story, they are watching a psychological drama with an ambiguous and unfinished ending. In this case, the main character's journey toward self-destruction is more important than the point and plot. Armed forces, from the police to the army and various private security services, will try to convince you of the perfection of their methods of recruiting new members and that failures are rare. However, here you can see the completely believable rise of a unique psychopath and his successful infiltration into the police force. Jim Davis is a completely realistic villain, whose motivations and actions you tend to believe in, especially when played by the professional Christian Bale. Overall impression: 75%. (16/07/2012)

An excellent drama that got right to me. A fundamental role in this is played by Christian Bale who, scene after scene, constructs the complex and mentally unstable character of former ranger, Jim Davis. He can be a nice guy who you would risk anything for, but at the same time he can be uncompromising swine who would sell his own grandmother, while retaining his credibility. Ayer did a good job directing and, apart from the rather slow beginning, I have no complaints. And also Freddy Rodriguez was a huge surprise, managing to keep step with Bale, which deserves praise. As for the screenplay, its strongest weapon is atmosphere and a sarcastic view on the world. It simply sucks you in. A perfect story from L.A.’s underworld. (23/03/2007)

Too shallow. Over time, the constantly pissed off and off the rails expression of Christian Bale will start to irritate you just like his problems in the film – he starts and doesn't even really know why. Harsh Times is indeed intense, but it has nothing to offer in terms of plot. The overwhelming majority of things are there for effect and it doesn't get under your skin. That is, assuming you have seen a thing or two and a high concentration of fucks and the raw feeling of a big city's periphery are not something that would impress you. (10/10/2014)

The story itself isn't great, and Ayer's direction isn't exactly bursting with ideas and character, but the film has one huge plus that elevates it from the grey of mediocrity, and that’s Christian Bale, of course. Something evil and mysterious lurks in his eyes, which from the very first moments will unsettle you and help you immerse in the otherwise bland plot. And Ayer manages to dose all that evil in the span of 110 minutes in such a way as to make everyone sit on their asses and watch. If you don't expect anything groundbreaking, harsh or deep in thought, you'll have a great time. (03/02/2013)

La force d’une amitié entre deux hommes, entre deux glandeurs qui passent leurs journées à faire des tours en ville dans leur voiture, à fumer de l’herbe, à picoler, à foutre le boxon. L’un est vétéran atteint de traumatismes de guerre et est confronté à des problèmes de drogue. L’autre est constamment à la recherche d’un emploi en essayant de répondre aux attentes ambitieuses de sa copine. Je m’attendais à tout autre chose ; je n’avais pas lu le résumé et m’imaginais plutôt un film policier musclé. À la place, on a affaire à un drame cru avec des éléments psychologiques. Christian Bale ne peut plus m’étonner. Les personnages détraqués, bizarres et compliqués lui sont prédestinés. Et Rodriguez, son comparse, se défend bien lui aussi. Dans l’ombre de Gabriella Solis, Eva Longoria ne parviendra probablement jamais à s’affirmer à la façon de la grande majorité des stars en série et, pour ne rien arranger, elle n’a pas eu beaucoup de latitude dans ce film-ci. Harsh Times est maigre en action et les choses se passent au compte-gouttes. C’est que la moitié du temps, on se trouve dans l’auto, en compagnie du duo central quand celui-ci est sous l’influence de l’alcool ou de la marijuana, ou bien dans la maison de leurs « potes » de la pègre. La deuxième moitié du film est régie par la violence, les injures, les blagues et l’action. La manière dont la deuxième moitié est filmée est plus réussie, surtout dans la séquence où le personnage de Christian Bale a ses « moments sombres » et qu’il n’arrive pas à faire la distinction entre réalité et hallucinations. Même chose dans la scène finale de la fusillade. Harsh Times est sans conteste un film hors du commun et qui vaut le déplacement. (23/07/2008)

Disappointment. After Ayer's perfect Street Kings, I was expecting another LA street hell, but I wasn't able to get past the contrivance. Plus, I wasn't buying Bale's acting in this one, and his constant use of language from the motherfucker tribe seemed overdone. The graphic depiction of the loss of self-control is just extra too, and in general it's all rather abbreviated. Ayer simply didn't have a sure directorial hand yet. (06/12/2010)

Christian Bale has been proving from the beginning that he is a character actor and that he fully immerses himself into his role. In this case, it means that we are watching a truly unpleasant person who will irritate you from the start, and you will hope that things will end badly for him. And you don't care that his behavior may be partially due to the war. He is a jerk. No, this simply isn't a film that I could like. Characters that are impossible to identify with. I like that the film goes its own way, but I couldn't find my way to it. Even the story itself isn't particularly interesting. (26/02/2014)