Force of Nature (2020) * 1/2

Directed by:  Michael Polish

Starring:  Emile Hirsch, Kate Bosworth, Mel Gibson, Stephanie Cayo, William Catlett, Jorge Luis Ramos, David Zayas

Force of Nature is about a suicidal Puerto Rico cop trapped in a building during a raging hurricane with a group of baddies attempting a heist.   No, Mel Gibson does not play the suicidal cop, a la Lethal Weapon.   Those expecting a "Mel Gibson movie" will be disappointed that he is only onscreen for roughly twenty combined minutes.   The rest will be disappointed, period.   Force of Nature is a dreary, waterlogged thriller minus the thrills.   The actors (except Gibson) perform as if they would rather be enduring a real hurricane than starring in this movie.   Gibson at least attempts to make something of his role of a dying former cop who assists Cardillo (Hirsch) in his efforts to thwart the gun-toting thieves.

Why is Cardillo pointing a gun in his mouth in the opening of Force of Nature?   We find out later, and by then we had long stopped caring.  He's guilt ridden and has a History, to be sure, and he's not especially thrilled about having to work a shift as a hurricane pounds the island.   Cardillo attempts to persuade Gibson and others to leave their apartment building and seek shelter elsewhere when John the Baptist (Zayas) arrives with his cronies searching for a priceless treasure.   The rest of the movie involves Cardillo's attempts, along with Gibson's nurse/daughter (Bosworth), to subdue the bad guys.

Force of Nature suffers from a malaise it never recovers from.   When the eye of the storm settles over the island and the hurricane temporarily subsides, we are relieved because we sense the movie and the hurricane will soon be over.   The last movie Mel Gibson was involved in (either starring or directing) which was worth a damn was nearly twenty years ago, except for the excellent Hacksaw Ridge (2016) for which he scored an Oscar nomination for directing.   No need to explain why Gibson's career has been in tatters for almost two decades, but his talents may be much better served directing than accepting third billing in a silly, empty thriller like Force of Nature.