Directed by Antoine Fuqua (The Equalizer (2014); Training Day (2001); Olympus Has Fallen (2013)) and starring Denzel Washington (The Equalizer (2014); The Book of Eli (2010); Training Day (2001); Fences (2016)), Dakota Fanning (War of the Worlds (2005); I am Sam (2001); Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)), Eugenio Mastrandrea (A.C.A.B. - All Cops Are Bastards (2012)), Gaia Scodellaro (State of Consciousness (2022); Promises (2021)), Remo Girone (Ford v Ferrari (2019); My Name is Vendetta (2022)) and David Denman (13 Hours (2016); Greenland (2020); Mare of Easttown (TV series, 2021)).
Action; 109 mins; 16+
Set almost exclusively in Italy, the action starts in Sicily where Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) has avenged some wrong that only becomes apparent late in the film. When escaping, he is wounded and eventually passes out. When he comes to, he finds he is being tended to by a friendly doctor, Enzo Arisio (Remo Girone). When he recovers his strength, he discovers he is in a small town by the coast near Naples where he recuperates.
He becomes accepted by the locals, including a waitress, Aminah (Gaia Scodellaro), and a police officer, Gio Bonucci (Eugenio Mastrandrea), amongst other townsfolk.
Nevertheless, he calls the CIA and tips them off about what he has seen while in Sicily; Emma Collins (Dakota Fanning) and Frank Conroy (David Denman) arrive on the scene and suspect that Syrian terrorists are at play. Meanwhile, the town is pressurised by local mafia bosses; witnessing the misery that they are causing, McCall decides to intervene and become his new-found friends' protector, only for events start to turn deadly...
Expecting a lot of violence, yes, there certainly was some - and when the violence started it was pretty gruesome indeed, with knives and other sharp implements left sticking out of open wounds, and severed limbs, etc. But there were more and (much) longer gunfights in various other recent films on general release.
But this film was a lot more than violence. It focussed on McCall, the man, the character and his recovery from a near-fatal injury. It showed his humane side, relaxing in a friendly town with new friends and being accepted for himself. The script too was very good indeed, an improvement from the second in the series, and the scenography showed an Italian town and surrounding (coastal) countryside in all its glory - not just in the blaze of summer, but during winter when it rained a lot too.
When he comes to, the doctor asks him is he a good man or a bad man? This is the crux of the story and a question with which McCall grapples.
Very satisfying, and quite emotional too towards the end, with a superb performance by Denzel Washington. Well, well worth a watch.
Currently being screened in Luxembourg at Kinepolis.
