Shooting blanks

Picture a modern-day Clint Eastwood chased by Lex Luthor and his hapless gang of thugs, with fight scenes that resemble a cross between the television show Batman and a James Bond movie where women succumb to seduction in the most improbable settings. Then you will have some idea of what to expect from Shoot 'Em Up, nothing beyond a stimulant for humanity's baser qualities.

Rated R for violence, nudity, graphic language, and adult situations, the movie begins with the mysterious Mr. Smith (Clive Owen) coming to the rescue of a woman in labor. He eventually learns that the baby in his arms is at the center of a harvesting scheme involving the Democratic front-runner for president. The storyline offers potential but becomes little more than an excuse to get from one gratuitous scene to another, with laughs and exciting gunfights but nothing beyond them.