Newly released action thriller 'The Shooter' may sound to many of the slightly older audience something like a film title from many years ago.
It was back in 1976 that John Wayne appeared in 'The Shootist', a Western many believe to be the Duke's finest film, and a film in which art imitated life in that Wayne's character John Bernard Books was dying of cancer when, in real life, Wayne himself was also dying.
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Although Wayne made dozens of Westerns his performance in the 'Shootist' - maybe due to his real life health situation - was somehow more understated than usual and, along with an all star case including Jimmy Stewart, Lauren Bacall and a very young future director Ron Howard, this film seems to be more enduring than many of the other films Wayne made during his career.
If you don't know who John Wayne is then look him up. In a career spanning close to six decades (1930s - 1970s) he starred in over 150 movies - many of them Westerns and he won many awards, including one Oscar.
He died in 1979 of cancer but will live long in the memory - and folklore - of those who saw him perform.
On a slightly more cheery note this week the similarly titled (although similar in no other way) 'The Shooter' gets its UK release and stars Mark Wahlberg as Bob Lee Swagger, a sniper with the US Marines.
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Swagger is part of an elite force who is double-crossed by his superiors while on active service in a foreign land.
After this episode he decides to retire only to be called back into service by his commanders who have a special job for him.
But when this goes badly wrong, and he gets implicated in something huge, he escapes and plots revenge on those who crossed him one time too many.
The sniper is indeed a wily fellow and because of what he does for a living you really don't want one of these guys as your enemy.
While other action heroes wade in with both barrels blazing, a sniper is a much more subtle killer content to keep to the shadows - unobserved - until it's too late to do anything about it.
Possibly the greatest film ever made with a sniper in the lead role is 'The Day of the Jackal' starring Edward Fox as the Jackal who attempted to assassinate French President Charles de Gaule.
Like that film 'The Shooter' involves a plot to assassinate a president although here our sniper isn't aware that he is the one being set up - not the president.
Whether this film has the charm or intensity that the two Bourne movies have is questionable.
The action is fast paced and the film starts at a sharp pace. But as this film enters its final quarter its twists and turns seem to be going nowhere fast.
The sniper is indeed a wily fellow and because of what he does for a living you really don't want one of these guys as your enemy.
