My Review: The Equalizer (7/10)

"I am offering you a chance to do the right thing. Take it."

With the exception of Training Day, which I absolutely loved, Antoine Fuqua hadn't directed a film that merited much acknowledgement. Being able to team up with Denzel Washington once again definitely attracted many people's attention towards this project, but if they were expecting The Equalizer to replicate the success of Training Day then they'll be disappointed because what they get with this film is a standard, by the books action thriller. It plays out like most revenge thrillers do and it follows the standard formula of the genre in such a way that you can easily predict the outcome of most of the film. What The Equalizer does have going for it however is the presence of Denzel Washington in the titular role playing a character with a particular set of skills. Washington is solid and he elevates this generic film in such a way that he manages to keep us entertained. There is something cool about his character and he portrays that interior smoothness very well here. His character may seem calm and friendly in the surface, but when it comes to helping the weak there is no one who can serve them justice better than him. His character will easily remind people of Liam Neeson in Taken, or even Tom Cruise in Jack Reacher although Washington's character is much more likable. The film also takes its time to set things up and it works to the films advantage here; I would even say the buildup is much stronger than the execution. The stylized violence is also present in this Fuqua film and I enjoyed the overall look of the film with the underlying score setting the tone. The Equalizer reminded me a lot of Man on Fire, which was a film I really loved so if you were a fan of it as well you might want to check this out. It is very similar in structure and I would go as far as saying that it has a superhero movie feel to it as well. 

I have seen over 20 films starring Denzel Washington and I yet haven't seen one I disliked. Sure, there were some average films he made, but never have I been disappointed by his movies. I know The Equalizer isn't groundbreaking and I shouldn't have enjoyed it as much as I did because it is full of cliches, but it was impossible for me to resist Washington's charm once again. He gives a solid performance in this action thriller and he carries the film. The female characters are all portrayed as victims here once again, but Chloe Grace Moretz sells her character very well. She has some solid scenes with Washington at the beginning of the film which help set the premise of the film. Melissa Leo could have been the strongest female character in the film, but she only has a brief appearance. This is basically a one man show with Washington personifying coolness. Marton Csokas is set up as a pretty strong villain during the first half of the film, but he could have been better used in the second half. Csokas is Washington's counterpart (kind of like what The Joker was to Batman) and the buildup to the face-off is what works best in this film. I had a great time with this action thriller despite all its flaws.

My Review: 2 Guns (6/10)

"No one expected it! You should have seen your face!"

Yes, we pretty much expected everything that was going to happen in this formulaic old-school buddy cop action comedy, but it was fun to see these two charismatic and talented actors interact with one another. Denzel Washington is one of my favorite actors and Mark Wahlberg is also incredibly likable and funny. They make this otherwise predictable and generic film entertaining. It kind of pays homage to those 90 action thrillers like Lethal Weapon or Bad Boys where you have several plot twists going on but the success of the film completely relied on the two lead characters and the way they played off each other. 2 Guns might suffer from a script that was written for a straight to DVD film, but Washington and Wahlberg elevate the material to a higher level. This is the second time that Wahlberg works with Icelandic director, Baltasar Kormakur, after last year's Contraband. In 2 Guns Wahlberg has a much lighter role, and he has several funny scenes, and it completely works considering the script is way too weak to take itself seriously. 2 Guns was an entertaining film, but it was way too formulaic to stand out. It is an ok film for a one time viewing, but just don't go into it expecting it to be mind blowing, because it's just a ridiculously fun film.

Robert Trench (Denzel Washington) is an undercover DEA agent trying to bring down the leader of a Mexican drug cartel known as Papi (Edward James Olmos). Michael Stigman (Mark Wahlberg) is a Naval Intelligence agent who is also trying to get to Papi's money to bring down his cartel. Robert and Stig team up without knowing that either one of them is really working undercover. Stig convinces Robert to rob a small local bank where Papi keeps his money. The heist is far more successful than they had anticipated and they soon discover that they have both been framed. This was never Papi's money and now they have all sort of government officials after them along with the cartel. They will have to learn to trust each other if they want to survive. Bill Paxton plays a supporting role as one of the government officials who is after the money, while Paula Patton plays Robert's love interest.

Washington and Wahlberg were great together and they are probably the film's biggest asset. I do have to admit that I enjoyed Bill Paxton's performance here. He was probably the lone secondary character that actually worked. James Marsden was completely miscast. As the title suggests, the film really relies on the two guns: Washington and Wahlberg. If you like these actors then you will probably enjoy this film, if you don't then forget about it. The film also suffers from a weaker second half, but at least it's fast paced and keeps you entertained. It's mindless fun. I can't think of a Denzel Washington film I haven't liked. He never disappoints.

My Review: Flight (9/10)

¨Nobody could've landed that plane like I did.¨

I don’t think Denzel Washington has ever made a bad film; he has created some wonderful and memorable characters and always makes every film he´s in much better than it otherwise would´ve been. Flight would have been an average film, but thanks to Washington´s performance it is one of the best films of 2012. This is Robert Zemeckis´s first live action film since Cast Away after having worked on three animated 3D motion capture films (Polar Express, Beowulf, and A Christmas Carol) and he´s back with a bang. I hope Zemeckis continues to work with live action films because this is what he´s really good at. He has made a number of successful films such as Back to the Future, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Forrest Gump. Despite being one of the best directors in the special effects department, he also knows how to make great dramas and stories that ring true. In Flight Zemeckis manages to mix special effects in the plane sequences with some great storytelling delivering a serious and emotional drama about a flawed hero. Zemeckis found the perfect man for his film in Denzel Washington who delivers each line with sincere and humane belief. Even his facial expressions showed so much about his character. This made the job so much easier for screenwriter John Gatins who didn’t have to shove every line of dialogue down the viewers’ throats because Washington´s performance made it easy for us to identify with him and his struggles. This performance has already earned a well deserved Golden Globe nomination for Washington and he simply continues to amaze me with his work.

I will be careful while I try to explain the plot because the film isn’t actually what you expect it to be about. I went into this film thinking it would be exclusively an action thriller where you had Denzel Washington playing the pilot who´s trying to save the day. The truth of the matter is that the thriller only takes place in the first few minutes; the rest of the film focuses on the drama that Captain Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington) faces once he survives the plane crash and deals with some problems of his own. This is more of a drama than an action thriller but it works really well thanks to Washington´s portrayal of Whip. He turns out to be a flawed hero because despite saving about a hundred lives, he´s an alcoholic. Despite the fact that no pilot would have been able to land the plane and save the passengers, fault has to be found for the incident and the few lives that were lost. Despite his heroic actions, Whip flew the plane under the influence of alcohol and drugs. This is where Hugh Lang (Don Cheadle) comes in as Whip´s attorney who represents the Pilot´s Association and wants to put the blame where it belongs: in the technical malfunction department. Whip also meets a recovering alcoholic in the hospital named Nicole (Kelly Reilly) with whom a love story ensues. John Goodman also has a supporting role as Harling Mays, a friend of Whip who´s always getting him the drugs he needs. And so the story has been set for the drama to take place.

When I say that Flight doesn´t turn out to be an action thriller and ends up being more of a drama about a hero struggling over his own addictions, I say it in a good way because it makes the film stand out above the rest of films in its genre. It is a film that is difficult to categorize because it goes to some unexpected places and instead of being a movie about a flight incident it really is a film revolving around a character who we sympathize with despite knowing he has some severe addictions and issues he has to face. It kind of deals with alcoholism in the same way that Crazy Heart did with Jeff Bridges´ character. I have to say that John Goodman´s performance was also really strong. Despite sharing very few scenes with Denzel he did manage to stay at the same level and delivered some of the few comic relief moments of an otherwise pretty dramatic and serious film. Flight is one of the top ten films of 2012 and Washington delivers his best performance since Training Day. This is a film you will want to see because Zemeckis knows what he´s doing and he´s at the top of his game. I hope he sticks with live action films and continues to work with Denzel because the two together are golden.

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My Review: Safe House (7/10)

¨Remember rule number one: you are responsible for your house guest. I'm your house guest.¨

I can`t remember ever watching a Denzel Washington film and being disappointed; he always seems to bring his game or at least choose interesting projects because I always end up enjoying his movies. He is one of the best actors of our time and he is really entertaining. Safe House may not be original or have the best script in the world, but it does have plenty of thrills and good performances to keep you at the edge of your seat throughout the movie. It has several similarities with the Bourne franchise, although not nearly as well crafted. This is a movie that won`t stick with you long, but it is good enough to entertain you for two hours and put a smile on your face. I know I can always count on Denzel Washington, and this movie is also powered by Ryan Reynolds performance as well. Both actors bring their A game and deliver a solid entertaining film. I don`t know how relatively unknown Swedish director, Daniel Espinosa, got such talented actors to star in his film, but he can be thankful for it because this movie probably wouldn’t have worked without them. The script written by David Guggenheim isn’t original, several scenes are predictable, but that didn’t ruin the film for me. I still had a great time with Safe House. I really didn’t like some of the shaky camera work, but I guess it`s a trend for several directors these days.

Denzel Washington is Tobin Frost, a former CIA agent who is now one of the most wanted men in the world after going rogue and selling classified information. He runs into a former MI6 agent in Cape Town, South Africa who gives him a disk containing what would seem as some very important information because as soon as he receives it he has dozens of people shooting at him and running after him. Frost has no other alternative but turn himself in at the United States consulate office before these men can get to him. Frost is taken to a Safe House which is guarded by rookie agent Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds). Matt`s contact is David Barlow (Brendan Gleeson) who lets him know that the guest will be arriving soon. When Frost arrives along with the CIA team they are ambushed by the same men that were after him before, and Matt has no other choice but to escape with Frost before these guys get to him. Matt has to deal with protecting Frost while at the same time not allowing him to escape and also figuring out who he can trust in the CIA agent because apparently someone is trying to get to them. Matt is forced into having to protect the enemy, but he will soon find out that the enemy could also come from within.

Safe House will probably be one more of those movies you will forget all about because it lacks originality and has nothing memorable about them, but I guarantee you will be entertained during two solid hours thanks to some good performances from Washington and Reynolds. There are also some interesting secondary actors like Brendan Gleeson, Vera Farmiga, Ruben Blades, Robert Patrick, and Sam Shepard who bring their talents to the table, but the truth of the matter is that the success of the film relies entirely on Reynolds and Washington who have proven yet again to be great and entertaining actors. These guys are doing what they do best: action thrillers and despite not having remarkable material to work with they still manage to entertain and keep us at the edge of our seats. Safe House is an enjoyable film, but just don`t expect much more than that. Not among Washington`s best work, but even mediocre Washington can carry a movie.

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My Review: Unstoppable (8/10)

¨This ain`t training. In training they just give you an F. Out here you get killed!¨

It has been only a year since Denzel Washington last stared in a movie involving a train as the main protagonist. Even though he teamed up once again with director Tony Scott, this time it is a different train and a different character, not a sequel. This is a far superior movie as well and it will keep you at the edge of your seat from the very beginning. Pelham was more of a crime thriller, and Unstoppable is just a plain good action film. Once the runaway train with no one on board begins to pick up speed and become some sort of a chemical missile the movie will have hooked you and it will not let you go until the very end. There is not anything special or original about this movie, but it works really well thanks to Denzel Washington (who when it comes to action is always a very bankable star). Chris Pine (from Star Trek fame) is a pleasant surprise as well and he really gives an up to par performance with Washington, and the chemistry between both of them is great. They made for a surprisingly good duo and Mark Bomback`s (Live Free or Die Hard) easy going believable script also helped make this film a pleasant movie going experience. The stars of the film are just two ordinary people who decide to take a huge risk in order to save thousands of lives, and everyone likes a story about heroes.  

The plot is pretty simple and the title of the film is pretty self explanatory: an unmanned half mile long train at increasing speed is just unstoppable. The movie is actually based on a real runaway train incident that occurred in Ohio in 2001, but of course Hollywood also has to add some ingredients to spice up the story. There is no way that oil/chemical storage tanks would be placed right under a curved bridge track (known as the Stanton Curve in this film). The story takes place in Pennsylvania where Frank (Denzel Washington), a veteran train engineer who has worked for the company for 28 years, has to team up for the day with Will Colson (Chris Pine) a young conductor with little field experience. In the meantime an incident has occurred in one of the tracks when Dewey (Ethan Suplee) accidently leaves the brakes off a freight train carrying some sort of dangerous and explosive chemical, and the vehicle begins to pick up speed and head to a very populated town without anyone on board to stop it. Frank and Will are in the same track and decide to try to catch up to the runaway train in reverse in order to try to reduce its speed. It’s a risky decision, but with the help of Connie (Rosario Dawson), the operator from the station with whom they communicate back and forth, they decide to try to stop the unstoppable.   

This is actually the fifth time that Tony Scott and Denzel Washington have collaborated together and they have made some great films (Man on Fire being by far my favorite one). Unstoppable is no exception and it works really well as an action film for several reasons. First of all we don`t have any villains in this story. Everything that goes wrong is a result of human error and stupidity. There are very bad decisions made here and that is actually the way it is most of the time in the real world. An accident has occurred and now two ordinary people have to come together in order to try to become heroes. They have no super powers, they are simply trying to do the best they can in their everyday lives. Beside the great chemistry between the two main characters, there are also some good supporting characters like Rosario Dawson and Lew Temple who simply enhance the movie even more. Tony Scott`s classic signature is all over this movie with shaky camera scenes and real action scenes (hardly no CGI is used) which give this film a more realistic feeling to it. The cinematography enhances the sense of urgency and speed of the train. Unstoppable was a very pleasant surprise and Scott knows how to make action movies, and having Denzel Washington on board is always a plus. Unstoppable is a simple movie that actually worked really well and I had a great time in the theater.

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My Review: The Book of Eli (8/10)

¨I fought the good fight, I finished the race, I kept the faith.¨

The last movie the Hughes brother had directed was From Hell back in 2001 with Johnny Depp. After being absent for 9 years they are back directing this sci-fi post- apocalyptic epic movie starring Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, and Mila Kunis. The wait was well worth it because twin brothers Albert and Allen have made one of the best movies of the year so far. The cinematography is just beautiful with mostly black and white colors predominating in every scene. The story is also very intriguing thanks to a great performance from Denzel Washington who is one of the best actors in the business. For the first 20 minutes there is hardly any dialogue, but Denzel`s screen presence carries this movie. Gary Oldman also does a great job portraying a villain once again, which is what he does best. Even Mila Kunis is a pleasure to watch on screen as the secondary character since she has really matured as an actress and her beauty is also a plus. The Book of Eli was written by Gary Whitta and his vision of the devastated future is very well developed and the characters are also very interesting. The movie mixes science fiction with action very well, but it also feels like a western movie during some points so I would say this is a sci-fi western film.

The Book of Eli takes place some thirty years after the world has been devastated by a war. America is a wasteland with very few people left and no cities remaining. Food and water are scarce and the few survivors will do whatever it takes to get their hands on anything. They live in very poor conditions, uncivilized, fighting for survival every day. Eli (Denzel Washington) has been traveling across America for 30 years heading west. He is on a mission and is carrying the only existing copy of the Bible left because all others have been burned during the war (hinting that a religious war was what took place). He has survived all these years because he is a good hunter and is able to defend himself from other voyagers with exceptional martial arts skills. On his journey he comes across a small town which is ruled by Carnegie (Gary Oldman). He is in control of this town and has many people who bring him basic elements such as shampoo and books. Carnegie knows where to get water and exchanges this for other things which have allowed him to rule the town. He is in search of the Bible, as he knows that he can control and manipulate the people with that Book. Eli comes across this town and Carnegie realizes what an interesting character he is and offers him to stay with them. He offers Eli a nice place to spend the night and gives him food, but Eli knows he has to continue on his journey. In order to change his mind, Carnegie sends Solara (Mila Kunis) a beautiful girl to spend the night with him. Eli doesn´t sleep with her, but offers her some of the food and prays with her. The next day Carnegie finds Solara praying and therefore deduces that Eli has the book that he has been looking for and he will do whatever it takes to get his hands on it. The plot develops from this point on with Eli trying to reach his destination while facing Carnegie and his people.

This is one of my favorite films of this year so far because it has a great cast, the scenery is just spectacular, the story hooks your attention from the opening scene, the action is very well choreographed, and I loved the revealing twist at the end of the movie. The movie has everything going for it, good visual effects, good acting, good action sequences, and even a very funny scene that involves Eli and Solara finding refugee at an old couple`s house. The best thing about the movie is without a doubt the final scene which was much better than I expected and really catches you by surprise. Denzel Washington once again is the true star of the film as he is in every movie he stars in. Gary Oldman is at his best when playing villains and Carnegie is not the exception. And as I said before, Mila Kunis is always a delight to watch on screen and she is on her way of becoming a future star. The Hughes brothers proved that their long absence in the film industry hasn`t affected them and that they still are capable of directing excellent movies, I just hope they don`t wait another 9 years for their next film. I highly recommend this movie!