Plot: a rogue soldier turned outlaw is thrust into a fight with a dirty sheriff and the cartel he works for to protect his niece and sister.
In “Close Range”, Scott Adkins takes on the role of Colton MacReady, a determined individual who embarks on a mission to rescue his kidnapped niece from the clutches of a powerful drug cartel.
Thus begins an unyielding struggle to protect his family. The formidable cartel descends upon his secluded ranch, fueled by a vengeful desire. Complicating matters, a corrupt local sheriff and his team of deputies ensure that assistance won’t arrive anytime soon. The screenplay for the movie was penned by Chad Law, who also wrote the script for Van Damme’s film “6 Bullets,” alongside Shane Dax Taylor.
For this film, Scott reunited again with Isaac Florentine, a collaboration that has yielded remarkable films like “Ninja,” “Ninja: Shadow of a Tear,” and “Undisputed III.” Scott expresses his enthusiasm for working with Isaac: “Well, I was asking to work with him, and he was asking to work with me. So we are a good team, and know each other very well. I know his strength, and he know’s my strenght and we try to compliment each other. He gave me my first breakthrough movie which was Undisputed 2, he charged me in the role of Boyka, as a lot of other people did’nt think I should have that role; he’s one of the best action directors working with.”
The Explosive Opening of Close Range
At the beginning of the movie, Colton MacReady goes to a farmhouse in a faraway place in Texas. He goes there to see his sister and her young daughter, whom he hasn’t been close to for a while. He wants to make sure they’re safe. But when he gets to the farmhouse, he finds out that a group of really mean people who sell drugs are using it to hide.
Things get really tense here. There’s a chase, and Colton has to use his fighting skills to protect himself from the people who are chasing him. This whole starting part of the movie is filmed without any breaks, showing us just how amazing Scott Adkins is as an actor. Scott: “I think we had about half a day to do that. We rehearsed it beforehand with all the stunt guys who had seen the space, I hadn’t seen it yet but they all knew it. So we did some run-throughs and I think we did about six or seven takes and the sixth take was the one that we went with.”
So, the beginning of “Close Range” is powerful and exciting. It shows us who Colton MacReady is and what kind of challenges he’s going to face in the movie.
A Modern Western: All Action, No Mercy
Close Range doesn’t have a particularly complex plot and takes place largely in a single location, which helped make the film relatively quick to shoot. The characters are introduced with little backstory, as the movie keeps its focus firmly on the relentless action.
Scott Adkins commented on this approach to filmmaking:
“Probably we even reduced the dialogue because… at the end of the day, it’s an action film, and we want to make sure that the fans of action are happy! So we tried to put in as much action as we can. We made the decision to focus on close combat.”
With his short hair, rugged appearance, leather jacket, worn jeans, and unmistakably tough presence, Scott Adkins perfectly embodies Colton MacReady, a hardened and determined man who looks every bit like someone who has been through his share of fights. His stripped-down, rugged look perfectly complements the character’s no-nonsense attitude as he takes on an entire drug cartel in a fast-paced action spectacle that rarely lets up.
Scott himself described the film as a modern Western, saying: “Colton MacReady is a good character, hard as nails… which I’m good at playing. It’s a full-on action movie. I put in 110% into the film. My character is more of an outlaw! A bad-ass character, more like what Boyka is…”
Numerous stunts were performed by Adkins himself, although not all of them. A particular scene showcases Colton MacReady leaping over a car, with Scott participating in certain aspects of the car stunts, while a dedicated stuntman handled the more intricate maneuvers. In another sequence, Colton is forcefully thrown against a fireplace, to which Scott attests, “I do stunts like that on a regularly base, I get used to it!”
Reflecting on the final product, Scott shares, “When you a film, you have a vision in your head. People want to see this type of movies. We are filling the gap in the marketplace and it’s a genre movie that you don’t get elsewhere. We have actors who can do their own fights and their own stunts, of course it’s compromised, you can do it never as good as you have in your head. You do your best, and not having time enough. But I’m really happy with the finalized product and think in the end that we achieved want we wanted to achieve.”
Making every shot count
Close Range is a low budget film. The movie revolves around action, and ultimately, all the recorded scenes were too short to make the film from. Scott: “So we needed everything that we shot. That’s why we have the opening sequence in the cars where we introduce all the bad guys by name. That was done sort of in a Tarantino way I guess, but it was primarily to extend the run time of the film.”
Gritty Close Combat: Colton’s Knife Fights
There are some pretty intense knife scenes in the movie. Scott: “It’s not that I know how to knife fight, it’s just that Jeremy Marinas was our amazing fight choreographer. We used a lot of his guys and he came up with the choreography and I didn’t have any problems with it at all. We wanted Colt MacReady to be gritty – less high flying kicks and more rough and tumble, to suit his character and we liked the idea of him having this concealed belt knife he can use to take care of business when he needs to. But Marinas planned it all and he is great at what he does. I like to have a choreographer who makes me look good (laughs)”
The Trailer