Back in the early 2010s, I found myself drawn to Guy Ritchie's films. Lately, though, I've been disappointed in what I've gotten. I can probably pinpoint the downturn with King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017). While Aladdin (2019) mostly worked due to its source material, films like The Gentlemen (2020) felt off. There's a visual charm to a Guy Ritchie film that has been missing as of late. Of course, visuals are only half of what made his early films great. It's that "can't take yourself too seriously" attitude that seems to have been lost since then.
While it's great to see Ritchie working with long-time collaborator Jason Statham again, I had the distinct feeling that I had seen Wrath of Man (2021) before when I rented it from Redbox. When the first 30 minutes of the film can be succinctly captured by a 2-minute trailer, then we have a problem. The fact that this same heist is repeated three times from different points of view made this almost 2-hour movie seem endless. Sure, I liked the little twists that revealed H's (Statham) motivations, but overall it felt too repetitive for me to care.
In fact, while the action was quite entertaining (especially once we got past the heist), the motivations of some of the characters felt a little too on-the-nose for a post-January 6th world. Unfortunately, because of these revelations throughout the film, it always has to take itself so seriously. Long gone are the goofy little bits like in Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) that made a Guy Ritchie film fun to watch instead of a slog to get through. But at least the visuals are starting to return to some of his previous, flashy stylings.
A mediocre Guy Ritchie heist film, I give Wrath of Man 3.0 stars out of 5.
While it's great to see Ritchie working with long-time collaborator Jason Statham again, I had the distinct feeling that I had seen Wrath of Man (2021) before when I rented it from Redbox. When the first 30 minutes of the film can be succinctly captured by a 2-minute trailer, then we have a problem. The fact that this same heist is repeated three times from different points of view made this almost 2-hour movie seem endless. Sure, I liked the little twists that revealed H's (Statham) motivations, but overall it felt too repetitive for me to care.
In fact, while the action was quite entertaining (especially once we got past the heist), the motivations of some of the characters felt a little too on-the-nose for a post-January 6th world. Unfortunately, because of these revelations throughout the film, it always has to take itself so seriously. Long gone are the goofy little bits like in Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) that made a Guy Ritchie film fun to watch instead of a slog to get through. But at least the visuals are starting to return to some of his previous, flashy stylings.
A mediocre Guy Ritchie heist film, I give Wrath of Man 3.0 stars out of 5.