The Enforcer

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.

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.

Recently it seems like Antonio Banderas has taken the same DTV route as many other aging action stars like Bruce Willis, Mel Gibson, John Travolta etc making mediocre DTV movies for a big paycheck.

The Enforcer isn't the worst movie DTV movie I've seen this year but it's not the best either. Kate Bosworth and rapper "2 Chains" essentially have extended cameos here that don't amount to much. Banderas is the real star here and for it's worth he actually is in this movie for a majority of it and puts effort into the role.

Unfortunately despite Banderas giving his full effort "The Enforcer" is a mediocre crime thriller with a played out redemption story that we've all seen too many times by this point.

Methodical and meandering at a good pace we are entertained immensely by all in the film but, its Antonio Banderas who holds each and every part of this amazing crime thriller together. The script is good and rolls out perfectly from everyone whilst, the individual roles are enacted with realism and believable feelings.

The story is slightly different from the usual crime thriller - in so much as it can be - because, its a film that has three story's going on but they are smoothly fused together. As being a film of the times it is a lot more graphically violent, but not so much as to make to cringe or throw up. It had an old film noir feeling to it at certain points, and the undercurrent that this adds is a treat to watch unfurling towards a climax of uncertain happening. Editing and lighting and camera angles were all just right, unhurried and tight but not cropped out of view etc.

One of this years well worth watching films I will say. Banderas has still got the skills!

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))