Dwayne Johnson is apparently not satisfied with small things. He proves this impressively in "Rampage – Big Meets Bigger".
The word small does not seem to be present in Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson (48, "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle") vocabulary. In the action hit "Rampage – Big Meets Bigger" from 2018, which will celebrate its German free TV premiere on Sunday, September 13, 2020 (8:15 pm, ProSieben), his best friend is a gorilla named George, who mutates into a giant monster. The former professional wrestler, who was named the highest paid actor in the world by the US magazine "Forbes" for the second time in a row in August, makes it clear in the film: big, bigger, The Rock.
"Rampage – Big Meets Bigger": That's what it's about
Primatologist Davis Okoye (Dwayne Johnson) has his problems dealing with other people, but he has an unshakable friendship with George, an exceptionally intelligent and rare albino silverback gorilla. When an illegal gene experiment gets out of hand, the meek monkey mutates into a frenzied and huge monster. However, George is not the only animal that grows to be oversized and causes a lot of destruction. With the disgraced geneticist Kate Caldwell (Naomie Harris), Okoye wants to find an antidote – to save George and the world.
Dwayne Johnson: an action professional through and through
The plot for "Rampage – Big meets Bigger" should be familiar to video game fans. The strip is based on an arcade game that was developed back in the late 1980s. However, in the film by director Brad Peyton (42, "San Andreas") no three people are transformed into monster animals, but existing living beings are enlarged many times over. The film lives up to its title addition "Big Meets Bigger", because it does not save on monsters, nor on action and destruction.
Dwayne Johnson is an action professional through and through – even as a primate researcher, he throws himself into a breakneck adventure without hesitation, messes with the US government, clears anyone who tries to get in his way and not even crashing planes, gunshot wounds or collapsing houses can stop it. The rock the way it lives – and how its fans love it. Gorilla George scores with his cheeky manner, because he is the only one in the film who is allowed to show the action hero the middle finger without getting a rub.
"The Walking Dead" star Jeffrey Dean Morgan (54) takes on Johnson – but he is taught otherwise. The chemistry between the two actors is right and their verbal exchanges give an idea of how much fun they should have had during the shooting. Joe Manganiello (45, "Magic Mike XXL") has a surprisingly short guest appearance. The men of creation get female reinforcement from 007 sidekick Naomie Harris (44, "James Bond 007: Specter") and Malin Akerman (42), who was allowed to act as a villain for the first time and was clearly enjoying it.
Big, bigger, The Rock
"Rampage – Big Meets Bigger" is an action hit on the hunt for superlatives. Little monsters or small destruction are not enough here. Dwayne Johnson lives up to his image as an action hero once again and his fans get their money's worth. But this time gorilla George plays him against the wall.