Denzel Washington is one of the best actors Hollywood has produced in the last 25 years, however, he needs to understand that not everyone can play a Liam Neeson after turning 60. In his latest flick The Equalizer 2, the actor has done some fabulous stunt but the repetitive plot, the unnecessarily dragged arcs and…
SAMAA | Omair Alavi – Posted: Jul 21, 2018 | Last Updated: 3 years ago
Denzel Washington is one of the best actors Hollywood has produced in the last 25 years, however, he needs to understand that not everyone can play a Liam Neeson after turning 60. In his latest flick The Equalizer 2, the actor has done some fabulous stunt but the repetitive plot, the unnecessarily dragged arcs and a climax that was just too long make it a film that you can give a miss.
The Plot
Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) works as an app-based cab driver who continues his life as The Equalizer whenever he sees injustice being done to someone. When one of his few-living friends is murdered on a trip to Europe, McCall decides to get to the bottom of the matter and finds out that a few of his ex-colleagues were now working as freelance assassins. After escaping an attempt on his life, McCall changes gear and decides to make life miserable for all involved. Does he succeed in his mission or do the bag guys win against one of their own; watch the film to find out.
The Good
The action sequences especially the one where Denzel’s character monitors his stopwatch are brilliantly done; the 63-year-old-actor is fit and enjoying a great career but he must try to branch out rather than following Liam Neeson’s footsteps. The car chases, the climax fight scene are well-choreographed and make you want to watch the first film again to get the feel. But such scenes are far less in number and more action would have helped. The last 15 minutes remind you of Rambo that came way back in the early 80s and that audience doesn’t go to the cinema for that kind of films!
The Bad
You can’t have Pedro Pascal in a film and wonder that someone else will be the bad guy; it’s like not expecting Bill Pullman to be a good guy in the film. I wasn’t shocked for a second when it was revealed that the Narcos actor was the person behind the murder – that was evident from the trailer too. Bill Pullman was wasted in the role of a ‘loose end’ and he could have been used in some authoritative character. The action sequences came after big intervals and that bored the audience, some of whom took to their mobile phones while some went outside to get a break. Even Melissa Leo wasn’t used in a way her fans would have loved. There was no need to include a ‘Muslim in America’ angle as we all know how non-white communities such as the African-Americans and immigrants feel during Trump regime!
The Verdict 2/5
This was director Antoine Fuqua’s first sequel and he failed to deliver because of lack of action, too much drama, and unnecessary preaching. Due to the advent of Netflix and other options, viewers have become intelligent and when they see something that is being too long for no reason, they snap. The same thing happens in The Equalizer 2 where too many dialogues replace too much action and people are left with Denzel’s character preaching a young boy, inspecting a wall being painted and helping the same guy escape from no-good gangsters. That would have seemed good in any other film, but The Equalizer 2 demanded more explosions, more action and more equalizing!
