Movie Breakdown: Wrath Of Man

Pre-Screening Stance:

Guy Ritchie’s last film, 2020’s The Gentlemen, was rock solid, and I can always go for some Jason Statham. Wrath Of Man could be a winner.

Post-Screening Ramble:

There’s a lot going on in Wrath Of Man, and most of it doesn’t work. Right out of the gate, the film looks like it’s going to be a pretty fun action romp – a stoic mystery man nicknamed H (Jason Statham) gets a job at cash truck company and immediately eliminates a bunch of would-be thieves with John Wick-like precision. Fun! Unfortunately though, where director Guy Ritchie should have kept his foot on the pedal, he instead chooses to let off of it completely by splintering the film into two different (but equally convoluted) storylines. One features H and it explores who he really is, and the other looks at the group of men who have been knocking over the cash trucks. Both of these parts – and I’m not exaggerating here – seem to last forever and it just destroys the film’s pace. I was checking my watch constantly and I couldn’t help but cringe each time it dawned on me that I was nowhere near the end of the movie’s near-two hour runtime. I actually think Wrath Of Man could have worked as a straight up action/heist film (especially if it had saved H’s motive as a twist), but Ritchie tried to re-invent the wheel here and the result is just a big boring mess. Skip.

Wrath Of Man will open in theaters this Friday, May 7.

One Last Thought:

Every time Scott Eastwood is in something my brain generates a tinge of interest because he’s Clint Eastwood’s kid, but then he speaks and I’m reminded that he’s only around because he’s Clint Eastwood’s kid. The guy just doesn’t have it.

One More Last Thought:

Josh Harnett is in this, but his role is so small and inconsequential that I doubt I’ll ever figure out why he signed on for the movie.