Wrath of Man

"You don't want to do this, you can get out of the truck now. But we're not leaving him behind. He's one of us. It's only money. In short, I'm getting him back."

This is Guy Ritchie's best film for years. By now we think we know what we're getting with a Guy Ritchie film starring Jason Staham but actually this is a little different, combining Ritchie's action sensibilities with a darker, more serious tone in the vein of Heat. 

H joins Fortico Security, a firm who provide security for cash trucks. When one truck is raided H single-handedly takes down a gang of armed robbers and it becomes clear there is more to him than meets the eye. H is out for revenge. 

I liked the way the narrative plays out here, showing us events from different perspectives. In itself that it not a new thing but it's interesting seeing it done in an action film. It's also interesting that the repeated scenes aren't different because they are different characters interpretation of what happens but because we only really see what they see. This is really effective and actually means that we basically get three different action scenes rather than the same one repeated. 

Indeed, the action as a whole is excellent here. The film is very violent and not many characters survive from start to end but every action scene is really well made. Ritchie, on the whole, gets the balance right with H managing to be both a tough fighter but also vulnerable and not some sort of invincible superhero. 

As revenge plots go, this one works well. It's clear that H isn't all he seems from the very start but holding back exactly who he is works brilliantly. It works well for the character as well as the plot because you've grown to like him before you find out what he is up to and it means you don't worry about the ethics as much as you would if you knew his plan from the start. 

It's one of those films which doesn't really do anything particularly new but everything it does do it does excellently. A decent revenge plot with a likeable, tough lead, an interesting way of showing different perspectives and some superb action scenes come together to make something very watchable.