The Enforcer

The Enforcer isn't a bad movie for this genre. It's good enough to watch once but it isn't a movie I would watch again in the future. For that it lacks quality. Antonio Banderas isn't a bad actor but he isn't an award-winning actor either. His facial expressions are most of the time the same, whatever character he plays. To be honest I preferred watching the to me unknown actor Mojean Aria. The Enforcer is an action movie, well shot but a bit predictable. The title itself already gives away the plot... Antonio is going to enforce the living hell, so don't expect anything else. A bit like a movie with Liam Neeson, you just know what the outcome will be.

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.

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.

Nothing wrong with the plot being that common, if it is done right.

It gets 4 stars, because i watched from start to end, but I felt like giving up constantly.. Its far too slow paced and isnt really that engaging.

Yo could skip the first 70 minutes and you'll get all the action, and enough story to undesrstand what was all about. It could have been a short film (~25 min) and acomplished the same, and more.

Banderas did a good job, but the rest of the cast was just mediocre. The dialogue was dull and felt forced most of the time.

For me at least, felt like a waste of time and most likely i will just forget about it pretty soon.

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!