The Mechanic

Let the mayhem begin…

The H-Bomb: Jason Statham does what Jason Statham does best in this latest entry from the Hollywood action movie factory. Here, Statham plays Arthur, a professional killer of the quiet, cold blooded variety. He specializes in assassinations that are either set up to look like accidents, or to point the guilt in another direction. To him, killing is entirely dispassionate and impersonal.

The closest thing he has to a friend is his contact and mentor, the wheelchair bound Harry (Donald Sutherland). One day, Arthur receives orders to kill Harry. He of course has his hesitations about it, but after checking with his big boss, Dean (Tony Goldwin), Arthur grudgingly carries out the hit.

Not long after, Arthur runs into Harry’s son, Steve (Ben Foster), an alcoholic ne’er-do-well with a mean violent streak. Despite statements to the contrary, Steve did care about his father and has a strong desire to avenge his death. Arthur lets his guilt trip get the better of him as he decides to take Steve under his wing and show him the ropes of his less than respectable profession, despite the fact that Steve is clearly an unhinged, ticking time bomb.

Arthur brings him in on his latest job and lets him take the reigns. He instructs Steve precisely on how to kill his target cleanly, instructions that Steve deliberately ignores in favor of a bloody, messy kill. An exceptionally messy kill that should’ve clued Arthur into the fact that he can’t control this kid. But, he continues to train him and take him on other assignments nonetheless.

Eventually, Arthur realizes that the organization he works for set him up to kill Harry, and is gunning for him next. And what, pray tell, would happen if Steve, the temperamental fellow that he is, ever found out that Arthur was the one who pulled the trigger on his old man?

But enough about the plot, which is a shitload of whatever, anyway. We’re here for the gunfights, the fistfights, the explosions, and the blood spatter, which this movie provides in spades. From what I hear, “The Mechanic” is a remake of a 1970’s Charlie Bronson flick of the same name. While I’ve never seen that film, I think it’s safe to say that this one goes a lot heavier on the pyrotechnics and carnage.

While there’s very little to distinguish this movie from others of its ilk, I will confess that it totally delivers what it’s supposed to deliver. The action we’re treated to is raw, visceral, and bloody as a douche. A couple of scenes that stood out for me were a would-be gay tryst turned bedroom brawl, and a totally fucking brutal display of fisticuffs on board an airport shuttle. Oh, then there’s the scene involving a hand in a garbage disposal… ah, but I won’t give that one away.

As I’ve said in other reviews, we’re living in an era where most action movies are pussified, bloodless, nutless, dickless PG-13 pieces of shit, and because of that, a movie like this one should be all the more appreciated. My hat goes off to Simon West, a director who’s done fuck all for me in the past, for creating a bat-shit crazy thrill ride that doesn’t skimp on the gruesome details. He may have bored the crap out of me with “Con Air” and “Tomb Raider”, but he made up for it by delivering a tight story with some wildly inventive, in your face gun-play as a cherry on top.

As for the cast… like I stated earlier, Jason Statham does what he does best, a kind of scruffy, poor man’s James Bond thing, and he is about as badass as badasses come. Solid shit, as usual. The real standout, though, is Ben Foster. Anyone who has seen “Alpha Dog” or “The Messenger” will tell you this guy is one hell of an actor. On one hand, he has this natural, manic intensity to him. On the other, there’s a real vulnerability I sensed about him, and I think he probably made his character much deeper than he ever was in the script. This dude is gonna win an Oscar one day, mark my motherfuckin’ words.

Donald Sutherland comes in like the veteran that he is and makes the most of his few minutes on screen. I actually gave a crap when he died, that’s what a great actor can do with a short role. The only character I was disappointed in was the main villain, Dean. Now, I thought Tony Goldwyn did fine in the role, it’s just the character was a bit of a letdown. He’s a sneering, tailored suit wearing, mamby-pamby bad guy who talks tough when he’s surrounded by twenty heavily armed bodyguards, but face him one-on-one, he turns into a total fucking jelly-spined bitch boy. A more formidable foe our heroes could have used.

Sadly, there’s no real novelty to “The Mechanic”, but… I had a fuckin’ good time watching it. It’s fast paced, shamelessly violent, and entertaining in a kind of guilty pleasure sort of way… but, nothing exceptional. If you’re an action junkie, then by all means, drop ten bucks and get your fix. As for everyone else… this is a renter.