Certification. 15
Running Time. 1 hour 55 mins
Director. Pierre Morel
Cast. Javier Bardem, Idris Elba, Sean Penn, Mark Rylance, Jasmine Trinca, Ray Winstone.
Rating. 51%
Review.
In the same vein as The Bourne Identity, Taken, The International or The American, Pierre Morel's The Gunman is a geopolitical action-thriller starring Sean Penn. Indeed, it was the French director Morel who unleashed Liam Neeson onto the mean streets of Paris with his 'very particular set of skills' in Taken.
Based on the novel La Position du Tireur Couché (The Prone Gunman), by Jean-Patrick Manchette, The Gunman is a decent action-thriller in parts, but only in parts. While the action has a sharpness to it, none of the other components of the film work - the simplistic storyline, the bloated script and the powerless political messaging.
Sean Penn is solid, and utterly convincing, as the former special forces operative, Jim Terrier, but the impressive supporting cast - Javier Bardem, Mark Rylance and Ray Winstone - are mere one-dimensional caricatures burdened with vapid and vacuous dialogue. Idris Elba makes but the most fleeting of appearances.
Furthermore, Terrier's rare brain disorder and a laughable conclusion in a bull ring are as preposterous as anything you would have seen in Jean-Claude Van Damme straight-to-DVD film back in the day.
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