Don't believe the hate! 'The Gray Man' is actually pretty good
Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans shine in action flick
HARK!
I hear…an over-the-top defense…
Ladies and gentlemen (and other) of the jury: I ask you, I beg you, I plead with you to give my client a fair trial!
Look at him, sitting before you in handcuffs: The Gray Man. (Click for trailer.)
Note the scratches on his face, the stab wounds in his back, the pained expression and crouched stance–from below-the-belt shots.
Oh, how the critics have attacked my client!
Yes, some of what they say is true: Netflix bankrolled this at a whopping $200 million budget.
But every penny of that is on the screen! The Russo brothers, Anthony and Joe, who started off with the Arrested Development comedy series before directing two Captain America and Avengers Marvel flicks, know how to frame action–and blast the movie with fights, chases, explosions and escapes. Nonstop action, folks!
And plenty of that budget went into a top-notch cast, led by Ryan Gosling as the everyone’s-against-me hero and Chris Evans–Captain America himself!--as the devious anti-hero.
Photos of cast and Gosling: Getty Images.
Playing the Tom Cruise/Matt Damon role in this Mission: Impossible/Bourne Identity follower (OK, knock off), as usual never seeming to break a sweat and casually tossing off one-liners, the cool Gosling is relatively believable in one scene after another that has him overpowering ten tough guys–plus crazy escapes from trapped situations.
Mission: Highly Improbable, I guess you could call this.
While the rest of the cast (including a subdued Billy Bob Thornton) is hit-and-miss, Evans is fantastic, flipping Captain America into Captain Anger. But the beauty of his anti-hero is that he moderates that anger, more slimy than rageful–the cheesy mustache perfectly sums up his unctuousness.
I would say “Evans is worth the price of admission, himself”--but remember, this is Netflix! Unless you want to pay to watch this spectacle on the big screen, if you’re a Netflix subscriber, The Gray Man is FREE!
I rest my case.