A January Jason Statham film is always a coin flip. On one side you might get something like The Beekeeper, silly but hugely entertaining. On the other, you get efforts like A Working Man, dull, bland, and ultimately very boring. From the trailer alone, that is exactly what I expected from his newest release Shelter, especially considering director Ric Roman Waugh gave us the mediocre Greenland 2 only a few weeks ago. So it gives me great pleasure to say I was wrong.

In his latest film, Statham plays Mason, an ex Royal Marine assassin hiding out in the Scottish Hebrides. When a storm strikes the island, Mason rescues Jesse (Bodhi Rae Breathnach), a young girl who has been bringing him supplies. The rescue comes at a cost, as he is being relentlessly pursued by his former boss, the head of MI6 (Bill Nighy), who deploys every available resource, including a new intelligence system called Thea and a hired killer known as Workman (Bryan Vigier).

It is now Mason’s job to not only survive, but also get Jesse to safety after she becomes caught up in the chaos surrounding him. Like many of Statham’s January releases, the screenplay is the weakest element. The familiar plot holes are present, and parts of the story stretch believability, with generous plot armour still firmly intact. This time though, it hardly takes away from the enjoyment. Shelter remains consistently fun and even manages to land a few genuinely emotional moments, which is perhaps the biggest surprise here.

Naturally, you go into a film like this for the action, and it delivers. It takes a little time to get going as the premise is carefully established, but once it kicks in, it hits hard. The hand to hand combat is sharply choreographed, and a mid film car chase provides excellent, adrenaline filled excitement, captured with energetic and engaging camera work.

Performance wise, Statham does exactly what you want him to do. His trademark gravelly delivery is fully intact, and honestly I am still not tired of it. Breathnach is excellent throughout, lifting the material she is given and showing real promise for the future. Nighy, although limited in his screen time, makes strong use of it and is an entertaining presence in a much darker role than we usually see from him.

Shelter is very much a what you see is what you get experience in its simplest form. A solid January action film that keeps the audience engaged from start to finish. Much like The Beekeeper before it, Shelter has comfortably earned a place among my guilty pleasures and left me grinning from ear to ear despite the obvious flaws. Definitely one to see on the biggest screen possible.