Wrath of Man

Sticking to the lower budget roots that got him a start in a big way thanks to Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, Guy Ritchie has followed up his minor but well-received The Gentleman with Wrath of Man, a crime thriller that sees the divisive but entertaining director get his favorite lad Jason Statham back on leading man duties.

The last time these two long term friends teamed up was for the near forgotten about Revolver, a film that is actually a lot better than you may remember it being, and Wrath of Man is far more straight forward than that affair, with Ritchie remaking European film Cash Truck to deliver a hard-boiled and gritty 90's like action/thriller that gives Statham some of his best material in years.

It may surprise many that this reforming of Ritchie and Statham see's the usually flamboyant director dial things back a notch or two with his hyperkinetic visuals and edits few and far between here and his cockney tinged humor reigned right in as we instead get a mostly humorous free affair following Statham's mysterious H in a new job for a cash truck company that has recently been hit by a deadly heist and seems destined to be targeted once more by a group of elite robbers looking to make a quick buck.

With some bleak but atmospheric cinematography from Alan Stewart, some moody and effective scoring from composer Christopher Benstead and some grizzled performances from co-stars Holt McCallany, Jeffrey Donovan, Scott Eastwood and for what feels like the first appearance in eons from Josh Hartnett, Wrath of Man is a solid all round package that benefits from Ritchie's experience hands as he delivers a non-linear examination of what lead H down this new employment path and who exactly is behind a string of well-oiled robberies taking place across Los Angeles.

There's certainly nothing new or unique about Wrath of Man's central plot or the moments that litter its runtime, in many ways this the definition of a vengeance/crime thriller rulebook in action but there's a sheen and professionalism on display throughout the film and with Statham having an absolute blast (figuratively and at times literally) being back with one of his longest serving collaborators and with some genuinely great set-pieces that ramp up to a pulse-pounding finale, Wrath of Man may not be top-shelf Ritchie, but its top-class crime thriller fare that will please all genre diehards.

Final Say -

Refrained Ritchie with just enough pizazz and flair to make you remember whose behind the camera, Wrath of Man is a throwback crime thriller with a killer lead character and some great set-ups, making this a consistently fun and impressively filmed watch without ever doing anything of a true noteworthy nature.

3 1/2 burritos out of 5.

I am surprised of some reviews that are saying about frustration from this movie. What did you expect from the Ritchie's film with Statham in 2021? Sophisticated drama with Oscar winning plot?

In fact I got from "Wrath of Man" exactly what I expected - charismatic and not very complicated action movie of a good quality. The only surprising moment for me is a gloomy atmosphere of the whole story. But Jason 100% fits this dark drama.

Guy Ritchie is after Quentin Tarantino and The Coen Brothers one of my favorite directors. With sublime movies like Snatch, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, and The Gentlemen, he's one of those directors you follow and are curious and excited about when a new movie comes out. But not all his movies are of the same quality. Like Sherlock Holmes for example (which I found mediocre) Wrath of Man is just passable. It's all well directed but the quality is just not there. And it's a movie with Jason Statham, so it speaks for itself what you will get. Statham never laughs, Statham can't be beaten, Statham wants revenge, in short Statham plays the same character every time. A bit like Liam Neeson. I don't say those are bad actors, certainly not, but it's just always the same. Wrath of Man is full of mindless action, a lot of dead people, a lot of questionable scenes (like the heist for example that looked like doomed to fail). I watched the movie trying not to yawn, I was hoping to get those great dialogues Guy Ritchie is known for, but that just never happened. Wrath of Man is just okay to watch once, but that's it, certainly not at the same level as the other movies from Guy Ritchie.

I love Guy Ritchie films, I saw this on a whim and didn't know it was him until the opening credits. So when I saw that I knew I was in for a white knuckle action fueled ride that I would love. And while its obviously not his best, by a long shot actually, I liked it, I enjoyed it, and I recommended it to friends and family. But a masterpiece it was not.

Good thing I didn't watch the trailer because going in blind, not knowing the story that was (for the most part) spoiled in the trailer, I enjoyed the semi-done before revenge plot. But the grit, the tension, and the action is what made it all for me. Jason Statham often become his own cliché in his own movies but not this one. The whole film was dirty, it felt gritty, and I love films that don't just show nice cinematography and sets, but instead have a consistent tone that makes you feel like you're in it. And of course the action is good, we already mentioned who this is coming from, the final "heist" of sorts was very entertaining and the action was intense and well filmed.

I did find the editing weird in a couple of spots, just a couple of moments and one entire segment I felt did not really flow with the rest of the film and kind of take you out of it, It would take up some time to say which scenes but you'll know them when you see them. Oddly cut, either to quick or just in an odd fashion, and an entire segment of the film that serves as backstory for me personally, was placed it a bad spot I also loved the score, it was very simplistic yet unnerving and effective. Only added good to the gritty imagery and tone we were looking at.

All in all its a solid action thriller that is no masterpiece but still worth a watch if you like the genre.

Always the cool tough guy that noone can beat.

Full of suspense, gripping the entire time, intense, two stories in parallel that come together, somewhat predictable betrayals and twist, felt a bit dark at times, satisfying ending, not a huge amount of action but a solid storyline that keeps you on edge.

Watch it on the big screen with a good sound system for greater intensity.