I walked into a showing of the new Mark Wahlberg film, Shooter, not knowing what to expect. I had not seen a single preview for it yet. However, I like movies where things blow up and people get shot. Movies with Wahlberg in them usually deliver such violence. And Shooter is no different.

Shooter begins in a war scene. Within minutes the screen is alight with gunfire. However, the movie soon slows again as the plot is built. I was relieved to discover that it was not a “war film.” Those have been sort of exhausted lately, in my opinion.

The story is of a former Marine scout sniper, Bob Lee Swagger. Living in solitude in the mountains, the ex-marksman is approached by government agents. He is told that he is needed to help stop a presidential assassination, to figure out how it would be done. The plot soon thickens when Swagger discovers he is, in fact, being framed for the assassination attempt.

The movie is intense. From the minute the sniper rifle is shot at the president there is constant action. As Swagger attempts to prove his innocence a lot of blood is shed and a lot of things explode. I thought it was great and has thick at twisting plot.

It has some really funny parts in it and the combat scenes are genius. The movie struck me as McGiver meets Rambo. The best part is the film was surprisingly lacking in cheesy one-liners that are so common in this genre. Directed by the Antoine Fuqua, of “Training Day, starring Mark Wahlberg and Danny Glover, this is definitely a movie to see.