The Equalizer
Dir: Antione Fuqua
Starring: Denzel Washington, Chloë
Grace Moretz, Marton Csokas, David Harbour, Johnny Skourtis, Bill Pullman, and
Melissa Leo
Corkscrews, a nail gun, and closed hand bludgeoning are some
of the methods of violence utilized in director Antione Fuqua’s good old-fashioned
revenge story. In the calm yet forceful lead is Denzel Washington, making what
is an unoriginal and many times copied story of a quiet man hiding specialized
deadly skills into something much more interesting than it should be with
violent interludes to gratify those waiting for just retribution.
Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) is a mild mannered,
well-liked home improvement store employee who has difficulty sleeping at night
but utilizes the time to sit at a local diner, drinking tea, and reading
literary classics. A young girl named Alina (Chloë
Grace Moretz), whose street name is Teri, talks with Robert about his books.
Teri is caught in a bad place with bad people; one night the men controlling
her beat her badly. Robert, trying to help his friend, makes an impromptu visit
to the Russian men that sent her to the hospital. Conversations don’t end well,
as Robert’s secretive past makes a bloody appearance leaving him the last man
standing. This group of bad guys was merely one brick of a bigger wall.
Antione Fuqua is no stranger to gritty, violent crime
stories. Having directed Washington in “Training Day” the director utilizes him
to distract from the derivative narrative elements. All the attributes and
characters found in revenge films are present, along with the violent
altercations designed here with Fuqua’s tendencies for overloaded frames. The
choice of music to enliven actions scenes and the slow motion/close-up
photography selections that describe Robert’s sensations are distracting and
take away from the emotion worked towards within the scene. This may be overly
picky, but Fuqua demonstrates restraint and in doing this he forms some
compelling scenes between the actors that is sadly lessened by the needless flair. These scenes are quiet and measured, with
characters talking intimately with each other during different states of
emotion. Whether the intimidating back and forth at a restaurant table between
Robert and a deadly Russian problem solver (Marton Csokas) or the compassionate
guidance on a lonely street between Robert and Teri, these scenes of character
development separate “The Equalizer” from others like it.
The cast is strong. Washington’s great control of the role
is nothing new for the seasoned actor who has played this role in different
variations a few times now. Chloë Grace Moretz
is again good and quite effective in a smaller role. Marton Csokas is a great
choice of villain; his intimidating, tattooed character goes from calm businessman
to aggressive killer in a blink, unfortunately the character is left in an
under-utilized position in the finale.
“The Equalizer” is based on a television show of the same
name from the 1980’s. The television series is shadowed in small parts but this
film is entirely Fuqua’s work. Denzel Washington is the main attraction here,
and he is quite good. While the narrative is a slightly better rehash of other
vengeance films, the compulsive style choices are distracting and subtract from
the exceptional subtle work the director incorporates between characters. The
film is still entertaining and should satisfy fans of Washington and those
looking for a no-nonsense action film.
Monte’s Rating
3.00 out of 5.00
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