Rating: C-
Dir: Antoine Fuqua
Star: Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning, Eugenio Mastrandrea, Andrea Scarduzio
Before watching this, I decided it would be best to re-read my review of The Equalizer 2, since I didn’t remember much about it. I was thus highly amused to discover my piece began, “I don’t remember much about the original Equalizer film. Indeed, I had to check my review, to be certain I had actually seen it, such was the lack of impact.” The same went for part two, it seemed, and I’ve not much doubt this one will be as quickly forgotten. Maybe I should just save time, and redirect this title to the earlier article? Though at least on this occasion, Robert McCall (Washington) is more of a vigilante, rather than being simply out for revenge.
He’s doing some equalizing in Sicily when he gets shot in the back by a little kid. McCall does manage to escape, and get off the island, but collapses unconscious on the Amalfi Coast. He’s nursed back to health by a friendly local cop, Giorgio Bonucci (Mastrandrea) and doctor, then settles in the small coastal town of Altamonte. It’s a peaceful life, although he does notify the CIA about the drugs he found in Sicily. That puts operative Emma Collins (Fanning) on his track. More directly a threat, the Camorra, the Neapolitan mafia, under Vincent Quaranta (Scarduzio) and his brothers, are seeking to take over and develop Altamonte. They won’t take no for an answer from the residents. McCall’s refusal may be slightly more robust.
It would probably have been better had the story concentrated entirely on McCall versus the Camorra. There are some nicely crunchy bits of violence as they try to intimidate him, only to find he’s considerably harder than they are. In the end, the final battle pitting him against Vincent and his bodyguards ends up feeling an afterthought. The angle involving McCall and Collins never amounts to much. It’s kinda cool this is a reunion of sorts. Washington rescued the kidnapped Fanning almost twenty years previously in Man on Fire, when she was going through the Adorable Moppet phase of her career. Here, their relationship is not given enough to develop; they only share the screen in a couple of scenes, and it’s not enough.
As in the previous two installments, Washington is the best thing about this. He remains watchable despite being consigned to spend what feels like half the movie, sitting outside an Italian cafe. It’s a tough life, this acting lark. This is supposed to be the end of the franchise, though like John Wick, a prequel is possible. The difference, though, is the palpable sense of progression achieved by Wick. This series seems happy to coast along, recycling itself for as long as the receipts continued to justify the means, and Washington was prepared to sign on. I guess the latter finally proved to be the limiting factor, though at least Denzel got to spend time in a very lovely part of Italy.