The Equalizer
Denzel Washington, Chloe Grace Moretz
Directed by Antoine Fuqua
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment 2014
132 minutes
The Equalizer is a variation on the old western story of a retired gunman reluctantly putting on the sheriff badge to avenge some injustice. Denzel Washington’s movie is also a new version of the mid-eighties TV series that ran on CBS. This is a good, smart action flick that keeps the viewer guessing and interested all the way through and does not overstay its welcome. I really liked the fact director Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Olympus Has Fallen) does not need a truckload of CGI effects or Matrix style slo-mo shots to make this thrilller worth your viewing dollar.
Bobby (Denzel Washington) is a 40-hour man at a hardware store. He lives a very regimented and quiet life. He befriends a young prostitute who sometimes eats at the local diner he has his evening tea at. Someone beats her up and Bobby tries to reason with the bad guys. When that fails, he kills all of them. This attracts the attention of a hitman and problem solver for the Russian mob (Marton Czokas) who soon realizes Bobby is not what he appears to be.
Things escalate as the Russian mob guy fails to understand how serious Bobby is when he says he wants it to leave town.
The final showdown alone is worth the price of admission for originality alone. It features lots of new and original ways to kill baddies.
Secondary stories involve Bobby helping other people he likes and not always violently to show he is not a psychopath.
The Equalizer does have a few weak points. For example, Masters, one of the cops, can only say something f– and something else m– f–. That is just lazy acting and writing and takes away all credibility from the character. That does not take anything away from enjoying this action movie.
Special features on the The Equalizer Blu-ray include playing the movie in Vengeance Mode which is some behind the scenes bits integrated into the movie, Inside The Equalizer, Denzel Washington – A Different Kind of Superhero, Equalizer Vision with Antoine Fuqua, Children of the Night, Home Mart: Taking Care of Business One Bolt at a Time, and a Photo Gallery.