Bit of a Task
Detective Brian Hogan (Alex Carter) of the narcotics division gets a tip off from a friend in the DEA about a big time operator known as The Prince (Patrick Goyette) doing business right under everyone's noses. Hell bent on catching this guy Brian's dedication leads to his girlfriend Linda (Kari Matchett) calling a day on their relationship and it also leads Brian to be part of a mixed bunch of agents from different divisions to get The Prince which leads to tensions between him and colleague 'Woody' Dubois (Richard Robitaille).
I have watched enough made for TV movies to know the warning signs before even starting a movie and there were plenty of those signs which came with "Task Force". Now warning signs don't automatically mean a bad movie but they usually mean average at best and "Task Force" is average at best with this drama based on a true story of a mixed bunch of detectives trying to bring down a crime lord called "The Prince" who launders money and imports drugs.
Now "Task Force" is nothing new; workaholic detective, mixed group of agents, a clever criminal always appearing to be one step ahead, I have lost track of the number of times I have come across this story and sadly "Task Force" doesn't manage to make the formula feel like it's its own. It works through the story nicely, dropping some detail such as how The Prince launders money through a casino but considering this is based on a true story it doesn't feel it and really feels just a generic cop movie.
The trouble is that it doesn't take any time to establish characters with Brian Hogan being the only one with anything close to depth although being a workaholic is simply a cliche. If only they had taken some time to establish characters and build the story rather than just tossing it at us it might have worked better but with out this care it only ever ends up feeling basic.
What this all boils down to is that "Task Force" is simply a routine made for TV cop movie which lacks the care and development to make it work. Because of that it neglects to build characters or build the story preferring to just throw the audience in at the deep end and hoping they can spot that all they have is cliches to deal with despite being based on a true story.
