Shelter Review: A simple action movie that cuts through

After hearing about Jason Statham's extensive catalog of classic action movies that I've been missing out on, I was really grateful to be invited by my friend Hunte to watch this film! Shelter sounded a lot more up my alley than many other recent action flicks, so I was pretty excited walking into this one. So, did it live up to my excitement and fill the big shoes that my first new release of 2026 needed to? That's what I, Brighton Nelson, will be delving into in today's Reel Ranker review.

There are many major highlights this film offers, but first, I'm going to dive into a couple of its misses. The first mixed aspect is... why was this rated R? Just because it's a dark, mature film? Because it barely had any blood or truly dark imagery. It probably would've been a lot more successful as a PG-13 film, and since the film did nothing with that R rating, those couple of tweaks would've given it the bigger platform it deserved. Either that, or we should've leaned into the R rating in more pivotal action moments, as some of the moments felt a little bit weak in their imagery.

Secondly, there are one or two shots where the dialogue and editing felt like a first draft they forgot to fix in reshoots. They weren't bad scenes, but they could've been executed better. I'm specifically thinking of after Jessie jumps on a boat and when Mason randomly says, "it's going to be okay" in response to a question. Third, there are a couple of plot contrivances here that made it feel like they weren't the best possible ways to move the plot forward. For example, the human trafficking plotline made no sense, especially when the police practically instantly rediscover Jessie at the end of the film. Finally, the introduction of this film's main villains felt a little abrupt and out of nowhere when they first appeared. A little tease that that's where the film was going in the first few minutes would've been nice, so it wouldn't have felt quite as jarring.

Shelter successfully balances its practical, gritty action with genuine heart drawn from its central father-daughter relationship.

However, that's where my negatives end with this film—I might be one of this film's biggest fans, because, for me, it seems to stick out to me a lot more than it did for others. It cut through for me amidst a lot of other action movies I've watched recently.

The first standout I have to share is that I love the flawed yet fantastic daddy-daughter relationship between Mason and Jessie. This was the heart of the film and the part that made me attached to the film. While I'm not a dad (it'd be a tad concerning if I were at my age), I am currently an assistant music teacher at an elementary school, all but engaged, and desperately hoping to be the world's best girl dad. Hence, these types of relationships always hit me in the feels.

Secondly, I love the film's tone and grit. While there are some occasional moments of levity (such as when Mason takes off his hat like it's going to make him more aerodynamic, or when he gives Jessie his freaking rifle), it's mostly a dark and sad film that still has a heart.

This tone also carries into this film's fantastic sequences. While the final kill of the main antagonist was super underwhelming (he basically gets shot off-screen... they should've at least leaned into the R elements in this scene, the dude deserved his brain to be sprayed all over the wall), everything else was immaculate. From the visceral Home-Alone-esque island defense sequence to the epic, all-practical car chase, to the various fights with the hitman, and the exceptionally bleak club sequence with catchy music. I love how realistic and practical the action was—a break from CGI is always an incredible feeling. It always makes me feel the stakes a lot more, and it is so great to see such real, raw camerawork.

I also loved how slow-burn the film's first half hour was. Too many films skip out on establishing a reason for me to give a heck about their characters, especially in the action genre. While I love myself a bombastic opening, a step away from all the standard action-movie one-upping and a step toward real character moments was something I adored about the film.

And perhaps the crowning jewel of this whole affair for me was the impeccable pacing and scaling. I love how the film starts with low stakes on an island and builds to super high stakes in a big city. Of course, most action movies attempt to crescendo and ratchet up the stakes, but something about the exact way this movie did it simply clicked incredibly well for me.

The Reel Ranker Verdict

Reel or Unreel? - Reel
The Reel Ranker Score: 79%
Letter Score: A
Star Ranking: 4 out of 5

Shelter successfully balances its practical, gritty action with genuine heart drawn from its central father-daughter relationship. While I understand why some have called it a pretty generic action movie, it does the action and the heart so well that it truly cut through for me. If you like older action films and connect deeply with father-child relationships, this is absolutely a movie for you!

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