The Equalizer 2

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Review–Mark Wahlberg and Winston Duke star in Netflix’s Spenser Confidential

March 8, 2020

Review by C.J. Bunce

If you ever longed for the easygoing action movies from the 1970s like Smokey and the Bandit and Every Which Way But Loose, you may want to check out the new Netflix movie Spenser Confidential. Like those films it has the big screen leading actor in Mark Wahlberg (The Italian Job, Shooter, Ted), playing the familiar Robert P. Parker character Spenser, the amiable co-star with Winston Duke (Black Panther, Us) as partner Hawk, the mouthy lead actress in Iliza Shlesinger (Instant Family, Forever 31) as Spenser’s ex Cissy, the snarky elder voice in Alan Arkin (Argo, Gattaca, So I Married an Axe Murderer, Sesame Street) as Spenser and Hawk’s mentor, and even the cute animal friend presence via a friendly hound dog (that’s Pearl). And a cool ride (here, a primo 1984 Buick Riviera).

Just like with the big screen movie The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (reviewed here at borg), viewers should forget about what they’ve read in the novels or experienced in the 1980s TV series starring Robert Urich and Avery Brooks. This is a trademark Mark Wahlberg movie, and he’s in familiar territory–Boston–and Wahlberg’s own real-life stint in jail brings a certain authenticity to his performance as a tough guy with a big mouth who can hold is own against much bigger thugs, emerging from the slammer. Wahlberg’s character has bits of the roles he’s taken on in The Departed (cop), Shooter (strategist), The Italian Job (planner), The Perfect Storm (driven), 2 Guns (drugs), The Other Guys (buddy cop), even Ted (Bostonian), and the film comes from director Peter Berg, who audiences have seen team up with Wahlberg before in Mile 22, Patriots Day, Deepwater Horizon, and Lone Survivor.

Wahlberg’s ex-cop is a good guy who must act when he sees someone in trouble, which in turn gets him into trouble. The story in Spenser Confidential is neither complex not action-packed. But Arkin and Shlesinger add some humor to what is very much an extended episode of early 1980s prime time television. It has the same quality that makes us keeping coming back for more in the reboot Magnum PI series and the new Stumptown series–actors we like, characters we like, and an easy mystery to solve.

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Now streaming–Sequel eclipses the original as Denzel Washington returns in The Equalizer 2

Filed under: Movies, Superheroes — Leave a comment

May 11, 2019

Review by C.J. Bunce

Is he a superhero?

A character who gives of himself to save lives, repeatedly, using his unusual mental and physical abilities–that’s pretty much our definition of superhero. If The Punisher is a superhero, if Batman would be a superhero without the costume, then you have the The Equalizer. Denzel Washington is back again, in the sequel to the surprise 2014 reboot of the 1980s television series, and if you missed Washington as this character in 2014, it’s time to catch up, as The Equalizer 2 makes its way to several steaming platforms, including Vudu and Amazon Prime, and it’s now showing on Starz.

And what a sequel! It is another one of those rare films that surpasses its predecessor. More intrigue, more action, and even without the origin story from the first movie, The Equalizer 2 proves audiences don’t need it to jump into a finally crafted story of spies and revenge. Washington is back as Robert McCall, and he’s The Saint, Ethan Hunt, James Bond, and The Shadow all rolled up into one. This time he’s started a new life in Boston, and learns about the city through his job as a Lyft driver. Diehard film fans really only need to see the one other name on the marquee with Washington to know what they’re in for: Antoine Fuqua. Fuqua (Training Day, Shooter, The Magnificent Seven) directs the film like he does all his others, like he has something to prove. The Equalizer 2 is worthy of its popular and critically acclaimed star, and Fuqua adds to the character with a spectacular setting for the film’s finale: a hurricane pummeling the coast of Massachusetts.

If you’re looking forward to the new Star Wars television series The Mandalorian, you have another reason to catch The Equalizer 2, as the series star Pedro Pascal (Kingsman: The Golden Circle, The Great Wall) plays a former team member of McCall in his CIA days. The subplots may even be better than the main story, and in one McCall mentors a young neighbor played by Ashton Sanders (Moonlight). Other supporting roles are filled by some familiar faces, including returning actors Melissa Leo (Homicide, Oblivion, Wayward Pines, Veronica Mars) and Bill Pullman (Deceived, Independence Day, Spaceballs), plus the always versatile Sakina Jaffrey (Heroes, Sleepy Hollow, Mr. Robot).

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Trailer Park–The “Sequels, Sequels, and Even More Sequels” Edition

Filed under: Fantasy Realms, Movies, Sci-Fi Café, Superheroes — Leave a comment

April 20, 2018

Sometimes so many trailers are in the queue it’s time to stack ’em, pack ’em and rack ’em. For us, that means it’s time for another installment of Trailer Park. We have a new Deadpool 2 trailer, reportedly the final trailer, and this time we meet the supporting characters. We have two new Solo: A Star Wars Story television spots you might have missed (do you say Han rhyming with Stan, like Lando does, or Han rhyming with Ron, like everyone else does?). We have the first look at Denzel Washington returning as Robert McCall in Equalizer 2. Plus another TV spot for next week’s Avengers: Infinity Wars. What else… one more trailer for Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. That’s a lot of sequel trailers. You’d think we were already living in The Stacks.

And posters! The studios have released several new movie posters to gawk at, including a late-breaking UK poster for Solo, a Deadpool 2 poster by Deadpool co-creator Rob Liefeld (an homage to New Mutants, Issue # 98), a poster for Equalizer 2, and, directly from Jamie Lee Curtis, the first look at the return of Michael Myers in the late 2018 release of the Halloween reboot.

So what are you waiting for? Check out these six trailers:

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All the movies you’ll want to see in 2018

Filed under: Backstage Pass, Fantasy Realms, Movies, Retro Fix, Sci-Fi Café, Superheroes — 3 Comments

December 25, 2017

Merry Christmas!

It’s that time of year again, time to take a look forward at what movies should be on your radar for 2018. Are you going to see them all? Heck no. These are the genre films we think borg.com readers will want to know about to make their own checklists for the coming year. We pulled 55 of the hundreds of films that have been finalized or are in varying stages of final production for next year’s movie calendar.

What looks that it may top the list of most fanboys and fangirls? How about Ready Player One in March? Solo: A Star Wars Story and Avengers: Infinity War in May? Sequels to Deadpool and The Incredibles in June? X-Men: Dark Phoenix in November? But don’t over look other films that look promising, like Winchester in February, Tomb Raider in March, and The Predator and The Equalizer sequels in August.

So grab your calendar and start making your plans for next year–here is the list of the movies you’ll want to see in 2018:

The Commuter – January 12 — Liam Neeson’s next action thriller finds him on a train with an offer he can’t refuse. Co-starring Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson.

Proud Mary – January 12 — A hitwoman played by Teraji P. Henson (Hidden Figures, Empire) has her life go sideways when a mob hit goes bad. With Neal McDonough and Danny Glover.

Ophelia – January 22 — Daisy Ridley stars as Ophelia in a twist on Shakepseare’s Hamlet told from her perspective. Co-starring Naomi Watts and Tom Felton.

Please Stand By – January 26 — Dakota Fanning, Toni Collette, and Alice Eve star in a story about a young woman with autism who sets her sights on winning a Star Trek writing competition.

Winchester – February 2 — Inspired by true events, the story of the heir to the Winchester firearms fortune finds herself haunted by the deaths of all killed by the weapons, leaving her to try to avoid them in an incredible mansion. Starring Helen Mirren and Jason Clarke.

Cloverfield 3 (yet to be titled) – February 2 — A crew of astronauts fight for survival on a space station. Starring Elizabeth Debicki, Daniel Brühl, and David Oyelowo.

Peter Rabbit – February 9 — Fox Studios brings a great cast of voice talent to their adaptation of the classic Beatrix Potter story. With Daisy Ridley, Margot Robbie, Elizabeth Debicki, Rose Byrne, and Domhnall Gleeson.

Monster Family – February 9 — A family is turned into monsters in this animated romp. Starring the voices of Jason Isaacs, Emily Watson, Nick Frost, and Catherine Tate.

Black Panther – February 16 — Ryan Coogler directs Marvel Comics’ king cat superhero Black Panther in his own standalone movie. Starring Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, with a reunion of The Hobbit’s Martin Freeman and Andy Serkis.

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