El protector

Got back from cinema tonight and I don't think I regretted going. It is a bit laughable at times in terms of plot believability(l (how did Banderes know the Chinese restaurant worker would happen to have the money clip???)

But crucially ....I never got bored and never looked at my watch

It's 90 mins which is my best movie length

Dumb, inconsistent plot, weird plot developments, poor character narrative and lots of weird funny

However...Banderes is a good actor as is the young lad. Nice sunny scenery and good action

Glad I went and I'd recommend going to watch it as a simple fun movie. Go and see it.

The combination of established star getting on a bit, in this case Antanio Bandaras, and simple action-oriented title conjures up old man kicking ass vibes like "The Equalizer" or "Taken". This is not one of those films.

Its not clear whether it isn't one of those films because it doesn't have the action budget or if it genuinely has pretentions towards being a Taxi Driver esqe hard boiled thriller. Either way the result is a snooze fest. There is nothing wrong with a minimal action thriller but the spaces need to build tension and intrigue, not have characters meander around until a contrived conclusion. Everything seems tiny in scope, with supposedly large scale criminal organisations run by a couple of guys and a cliche spouting crime boss who seemingly has one henchman.

Antonio Bandaras brings some class to the title role but there isn't much he can do with a character who's one trait is "estranged from his daughter" and who does less to drive the plot than random coincidence does. Likewise, Mojin Aria does his best to portrey his character "Stray" (he's from the streets you see) as a scrappy survivor who's on the edge and just wants to improve his lot in life but is stuck with laughable romance dialogue and a mentorship angle with Bandaras that boils down to a one job, a handful of sentences and some car trouble.

It really feels like everyone involved just wanted to get this film over and done with. Anyone watching will share that sentiment.

4 dead gangsters out of 10 in the whole city.

Some of the external reviews say this film is "predictable." Not really a fair criticism, all films are predictable in that they all have a beginning a middle and an end. They all tell a story. The real issue is, is the film entertaining, does it hold the attention, does it connect? In this one, Banderas (age 62!) plays the semi-retired hitman feeling pangs of regret, trying to do the right thing. Similar to 1995's Assassins, where he played opposite Stallone. Does the film work? Yes? Mainly because of his star power, good direction, editing, casting. He makes you care about what happens next. Above average. Recommended. ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))

Nothing wrong with the plot being that common, if it is done right.

It gets 4 stars, because i watched from start to end, but I felt like giving up constantly.. Its far too slow paced and isnt really that engaging.

Yo could skip the first 70 minutes and you'll get all the action, and enough story to undesrstand what was all about. It could have been a short film (~25 min) and acomplished the same, and more.

Banderas did a good job, but the rest of the cast was just mediocre. The dialogue was dull and felt forced most of the time.

For me at least, felt like a waste of time and most likely i will just forget about it pretty soon.

Wow, did they get things wrong with this movie.

BEWARE: THIS IS NOT A TOUGH ACTION MOVIE. AT ALL.

Worst combination of genres possible. Clint Eastwood perfected the tough guy genre. Liam Neeson did it again with the "Taken" series. But Antonio Banderas fails to become a real tough guy. Not because he cant act like one, but because of this TERRIBLE script that cant seem to decide wether this is sentimental tearjerker or a tough action crime movie.

Not any good? Well, the start was really violent and heavy and impressive. I honestly thought I was in for a solid butch action crime movie. But that promising start only lasted for some 20 minutes. Bummer!

The bad: then after some 20 minutes we suddenly get to see "tough" criminal Antonio Banderas suddenly turn into a sentimental dad, stuttering and embarassing himself while seeing his daughter for the first time in years.

Then after that we get to see minutes long of a lovey dovey romantic scene with another supposedly "tough" crime guy. And this goes on and on throughout the entire movie. Apperently sentimental wokism has even penetrated the crime movies genre!

Really strange and CRINGEWORTHY mix of ( a little bit) of violence and LOTS of sentimental lovey dovey stuff.