Film Review: 'Army Of One' (2020)

Rising star Ellen Hollman stars in the 2020 movie Army of One. There have been a few films with that title. This one is better than the others, though not by much.

Brenner Baker (Ellen Hollman) is having the worst day of her life. Earlier in the week, she and her husband, Dillion Baker (Matt Passmore) decided to take a vacation. Dillion, a police officer, is recuperating from a gunshot wound. Instead of being holed up at home, the couple decides to go on a hiking adventure outside the city.

Some of the locals confront them on the road to their campsite. The young men are led by Butch. He and the others seem to be descendants from the cast of Deliverance but with better dental hygiene. The Bakers run into them again at a local diner. An altercation escalates and is about to get out of hand when the waitress, Mama (Geraldine Singer), intervenes. The local men respect her authority. The Bakers thank her, and all seems well for now.

After the Bakers arrive at their campsite, a local officer warns them to stay on the trails. The locals do not trust outsiders very much. The couple takes the warning under advisement. While on their hike, they are caught in a rainstorm. Brenner is a bit more mischievous than her husband. Instead of going back to camp, she breaks into a seemingly quaint cabin they find along their route.

Meanwhile, you learn that Mama practically runs the town and surrounding areas. She owns 10,000 acres of land. Mama is a God-fearing Christian whom everyone adores and perhaps fears. She is the matriarch to Butch and a few of the other hooligans we met earlier.

They all live together with Mama, a nerdier brother, and several other men. The only other women on the property are enslaved women. The family turns out to be involved in every type of illegal operation possible, including human trafficking.

Upon closer inspection of their temporary hideout, the Bakers find the place to be equal parts garish country charm and makeshift fortress (with an unlocked front door). There are tchotchkes everywhere and bars over the windows. Brenner's curiosity gets the best of her as she insists on continuing to explore the house. She discovers a cache of heavy guns, ammo, and C4. Just as they turn to leave, they overstay their welcome. The cabin belongs to Butch.

Brenner and Dillion find themselves tied to chairs and staring down the barrel of a gun while arguing with Butch and his companions for the third time that day. This time though, Butch answers back with a shotgun blast to the head for Dillion and Brenner. Butch's accomplices dump their bodies in a nearby gully.

A few hours later, Brenner wakes up from a dream. We learn that she is not just the pretty and fit wife of a big city police officer. She is Brenner Baker, 1st Lieutenant of the Army's legendary 75th Ranger Division.

The bullet had only grazed her temple. Unfortunately, Dillion was not as lucky. Brenner takes off her dog tags and places them around the neck of her dead husband, putting this chapter of her life behind her.

Brenner is having a bad day. She is going to make sure her husband's killers share her pain. Brenner knows what she must do next. She stumbles back to her campsite and prepares her assault. Brenner will avenge her husband's death.

The rest of the movie flies through scenes of intense action sequences and mediocre performances. The only character besides Hollman's Brenner who captivates your attention is Mama. Geraldine Singer is deliciously evil as the self-righteous matriarch of this hillbilly crime family. The rest of the "Big Bads" are too predictable, lacking any real character depth.

Hollman is best in the action scenes where we get to watch her moves. She trained in jiu-jitsu at Gracie Academy. While Hollman brought her best to every fight sequence, some of her sparring partners did not. Full disclosure: Many years ago, I spent some time with the other jiu-jitsu academy, 10th Planet. Both are excellent places to learn that craft.

If you want to catch a glimpse of Hollman in action before her role in Matrix 4, then check this movie out. Uncork'd Entertainment releases Army of One on December 15, 2020, on the following platforms: iTunes, Vudu, Xbox, Google Play, Amazon, DirecTV, Dish Network, Fandango Now, iNDEMAND, and DVD.

Written By Leana Ahmed

Syndicated From Culture Slate