The Equalizer 3
Denzel’s back in a violent action-thriller that has the confidence to match the pace of its leading man.
Disarming: Denzel Washington and Andrea Dodero
It’s good to see Denzel Washington back on the big screen. Better still, it’s good to see him back in the capable hands of Antoine Fuqua, who directed him to an Oscar in Training Day. This is their fifth collaboration and they are an accomplished match. Few directors today can be relied on to routinely provide such high-calibre action and, again, Fuqua does not disappoint. It helps that the central character of Robert McCall is such an endlessly engaging one, and that Denzel is such a charismatic presence. McCall, originally played by the English actor Edward Woodward in the CBS TV series, has undergone many transformations. He’s essentially a good man who does bad things to very bad people, a dichotomy that provides a moral complexity to the franchise. There is violence aplenty – even before the opening title, the body count is worrisome – but such comeuppance might seem justified when you realise the evil that these men do.
Robert McCall, a former Marine and DIA operative, is dedicated to writing the wrongs that formal crime-fighting institutions are unable to implement, due either to incompetence or bureaucratic protocol. So, McCall is an avenging angel, but unlike the conspicuously blonde, blue-eyed cherub he espies in a Sicilian church, he is a black man in a small community and sticks out like a sore thumb. Furthermore, he is recovering from a gunshot wound and is dependent on the kindness of strangers – strangers that quickly become an extended family.
Previously, McCall had taken on the Russian mafia and corrupt government agents and here, having wreaked his vengeance on an invincible drug lord, he turns his attention to the Camorra. But first he must nurse that nasty injury and so lies low in the ancient settlement of Altamonte. The first real surprise is the length of the establishing shot of the beautiful coastal town, along with the leisurely scenes of everyday Sicilian life. Fuqua, like McCall, is biding his time, building an empathy for the natives. Obviously, McCall proves a curio, but with his charm and good nature he quickly makes friends, friends he would like to protect…
Antoine Fuqua is not in the business of assaulting his audience with fast cuts and CGI overload. His pacing is aligned with that of his protagonist, whose unhurried, measured movements display that of a man comfortable in his own skin. But even with his advancing years and a stick for support, McCall is not someone with whom you should meddle. Along with his obsessive-compulsive behaviour, he is almost supernaturally observant, clocking every available exit and potential weapon. And he knows precisely where a chap’s median nerve is – and the value of a little pain compliance.
In spite of its genre and numerical standing, The Equalizer 3 is replete with texture and distinction. Every details counts, whether it’s a glance, a cultural joke or the way Denzel adopts a bodyweight squat, exhibiting his considerable chore strength. There are some stereotypical villains (who smoke and sport alarming tattoos) and astonishingly beautiful women, but with Denzel centre stage there is a reassuring sense of reality. When the violence comes, the film has earned the impact it makes.
JAMES CAMERON-WILSON
Cast: Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning, Eugenio Mastrandrea, David Denman, Gaia Scodellaro, Remo Girone, Andrea Scarduzio, Sonia Ammar, Adolfo Margiotta, Andrea Dodero, Daniele Perrone, Zakaria Hamza, Manuela Tasciotti, Sonia Ben Ammar.
Dir Antoine Fuqua, Pro Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Denzel Washington, Antoine Fuqua, Steve Tisch, Clayton Townsend, Alex Siskin and Tony Eldridge, Screenplay Richard Wenk, Ph Robert Richardson, Pro Des Naomi Shohan, Ed Conrad Buff, Music Marcelo Zarvos, Costumes Giovanni Casalnuovo, Sound Will Digby.
Columbia Pictures/Eagle Pictures/Escape Artists/Zhiv Productions-Sony Pictures.
108 mins. USA. 2023. UK Rel: 30 August 2023. US Rel: 1 September 2023. Cert. 15.
