Movie Review: The Equalizer 3 (2023)
Synopsis: After wiping out a criminal operation at a winery in Sicily, Robert McCall is shot in the back. He manages to make it back to the Italian mainland before passing out and, after being found by a police officer, wakes up under the care of a doctor in the small town of Altamonte. As he recovers from his injury, Robert grows to love the community and begins to finally find peace. However, when he learns members of the Italian mafia are terrorizing the residents, he decides to once again take matters into his own hands.
Who's in it? The movie stars Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning, Eugenio Mastrandrea, David Denman and Remo Girone.
Review: After deciding not to go out for karaoke last night, my wife and I instead decided to watch The Equalizer 3 and finish up the trilogy. After watching it, I can honestly say I liked it better than the second one but am not convinced this needed to be more than one movie.
I did like the fact the movie didn't attempt to do too much. There is one clear villain with just enough manpower and firepower to give Robert (Washington) a challenge, and, unlike the second movie, there aren't a bunch of subplots to distract from that.
I also liked how the film used the extra time to explore the emotional toll the violence was taking on Robert. There is a nice contrast between that person and the person he is slowly becoming by the end of the movie, before being forced back into action.
My biggest complaint about the movie is it takes practically the entire runtime for him to actually do something. Other than the couple bad guys he kills in the opening part of the film (and the bunch of bad guys who are killed off screen), most of the movie is Robert recovering from his wound, observing the local mafia and spending a lot of time talking. Then, when he finally does face off with the local gang, it is a bit too easy for him to win.
I also felt like the movie wasted Dakota Fanning. Her character, CIA agent Emma Collins, doesn't have any sort of significant impact on the plot. In fact, I can't remember her doing anything other than trying (and failing) to figure out who Robert was before nearly getting blown up. While there was a nice little surprise tying her to the previous two movies, it wasn't as though the film did anything to convince me she was even remotely suited to take over where Robert and company left off.
Final Opinion: As I said, it was better than the second one but still fell a bit flat in my opinion. Ultimately, I think this film and The Equalizer 2 prove not all films need to be made into trilogies.
My Grade: B-
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