The Equalizer

The Equalizer

Starring Denzel Washington, Marton Csokas, Chloe Grace Moretz, Melissa Leo

Directed by Antoine Fuqua

The Story:
Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) is leading a rather quiet life: he lives alone after his wife's death, he works at a Home Depot-style retail store, and he enjoys reading at an all-night diner.  He befriends Teri (Chloe Grace Moretz), and takes her under his wing to teach her the importance of life and valuing herself as a human being, despite servicing as a prostitute.

When she's beaten up by her Russian owners, McCall unleashes his old training and dispatches harsh justice, inciting the ire of the Russian mafia, who sends Teddy Rensen (Marton Csokas) to dispatch McCall.  Instead, Rensen finds McCall to be more than meets the eye, and learns to never underestimate the opponent.

The Synopsis:
Quentin Tarantino and Samuel L. Jackson.  Tim Burton and Johnny Depp.  Ron Howard and Tom Hanks.  Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro.  Often, directors like to work with actors for different films, and its this symmetry that works perfectly on the big screen.  Another such dynamic duo is Antoine Fuqua and Denzel Washington, who have worked together on four films to date, one of which earned Washington a Best Actor Oscar (for "Training Day").  Here, the two work together in a re-imagining of an 80s action television series "The Equalizer," which starred Edward Woodward as Robert McCall, a former Intelligence Agent who helps threatened people find justice.

While the film takes the same concept, it changes several other aspects of the television series.  For one, on the show McCall was haunted by the events of his past, while in the film it seems to fuel his passion.  Even though he's retired, he comes out to protect a young girl from a gang of ruthless thugs, and finds himself thrust into an international incident.  Not for a moment do we see remorse or sadness for past events, but a steely resolve throughout which makes us glad we never pissed off someone of McCall's caliber.

Denzel Washington is one of cinema's most prolific actors, who can perform comedy, action, and drama at the flip of a hat, and even though he turned sixty years old when the film was released, he still harnessed the abilities of a man half his age.  It's a wonder to see actors such as Washington, Liam Neeson, and Harrison Ford still be able to kick butt so well at an older age, and what's more amazing is that it's totally believable.  In fact, this is what McCall uses best - his age - to take down his foes.  While others see him as an old man who can't defend himself, he uses that prejudice against them and proves that he has the goods to get the job done.

"The Equalizer" allows Washington to do more than just serve as a butt-kicking hero: one minute he's stabbing a guy with a wine screw, the next he's dishing out wise knowledge to the youth of the generation; at one moment he's disarming two corrupt police officers, and the next he's diligently working with an overweight fellow employee to loose weight so he can become a security guard.  It's this double life that's fascinating to see, and Washington nails it on both ends.  We see a soft, sensitive side to the man, and the next we see an unflinching resolve, a look of pure detachment that sends fear in the hearts of his enemies.

While the film does follow a typical flow, the tension and action never relents.  Fuqua is the king of misdirection, and uses perfected camera work to make us think one thing is happening before we're turned on our heads with what actually does happen.  It's this tense filmmaking that propels the film from a typical vengeance-style film to a full-on action epic, with a grounded lead actor who can basically do no wrong.

The violence in the film is fast and furious, but never goes to the gratuitous - it's not bloody because it can be, but because it must be.  McCall never uses a gun, but instead relies on a certain set of skills to achieve his goal, using an almost sixth-sense feel to judge the room and take down his assailants.  McCall also suffers from OCD, and it's this addition to his personality that really adds to his depth, since we don't fully know his backstory - and that's a very good thing.  Very rare do we get a hero whose life we don't know from birth to the moment of the film's beginning, but Fuqua manages to keep McCall's identity a secret to the audience, which only adds to the excitement as we don't know what he's thinking or how he's able to accomplish his almost MacGuyver-type skills.  It's thrilling, exciting, and keeps you on the edge of your seat - just like any good action movie should.

The Summary:
With the dynamic duo of Denzel Washington on the screen and Antoine Fuqua behind, "The Equalizer" becomes something more than just a tired action movie, but something with substance and nuance we don't see in many films.

The Score: A