The Equalizer 2 (2018) Movie Review

Synopsis:

Lethal assassin Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) must put his skills to the test once again. This is when he discovers the death of his longtime friend, Susan Plummer (Melissa Leo).

Review:

The Equalizer (2014) pleased most audiences with its stylistic visuals and brutal action.

Director Antoine Fuqua returns to direct the second installment. With it comes the same brutal action fans should expect.

Despite this, The Equalizer 2 lacks the same narrative agency as the first entry. As expected, Denzel’s performance as Robert McCall remains a standout.

Aside from this, the film’s central plot has too many events going on to sustain audience interest.

Also, The Equalizer 2’s main antagonist, Dave York (Pedro Pascal), has the briefest character development.

With it, the character fails to reach the heights achieved by the previous film’s main antagonist.

Pedro’s on-screen presence as an antagonist is lacking. Despite this, his final confrontation with McCall is brutal.

This, as expected, includes some creative moments throughout.

The Equalizer 2 succeeds in telling a smaller story with Ashton Sanders’ Miles Whittaker.

This is despite the central narrative not being as strong this time.

Both Denzel and Ashton are natural with their material, which is welcome. As expected, Miles soon gets involved in the overarching narrative towards the conclusion.

It is the smaller moments between him and McCall that resonate more often than not.

As a whole, The Equalizer 2’s visuals are not as striking when compared with the first installment.

Yet again, Antoine Fuqua utilizes his welcome style to establish the various locations. Compared to the first film, though, the visuals are not as distinctive.

Harry Gregson-Williams returns, bringing a sense of familiarity to the score. His score also adds some tension to action sequences.

This is despite it not being as pronounced when compared to The Equalizer (2014).

Conclusion:

In conclusion, The Equalizer 2 has entertaining action. It also has a familiar visual style by director Antoine Fuqua.

Denzel Washington’s performance elevates the proceedings. This is despite its plot being less engaging and consistent.

Contributing to the film’s uneven plot structure is its primary antagonist, Dave York (Pedro Pascal). Pedro’s performance is decent in The Equalizer 2.

Despite this, his character lacks development and screen presence. As a result, it slows the film down.

This film does succeed with Denzel’s interactions with Ashton Sanders’ Miles Whittaker.

As stated in the review, both actors are natural with their dialogue. This makes their scenes together the most competent in the film.

Harry Gregson-Williams’ soundtrack can also entertain, adding some excitement to proceedings.

Even if the soundtrack is less of a focus compared to the previous film, it remains above average.

As a whole, The Equalizer 2 can be an entertaining action film. It falters, though, with its plot structure and main antagonist.

Regardless of these faults, The Equalizer 2 contains good performances and action.

These should be enough to entertain Denzel Washington fans or those who enjoyed the previous film.

Sam’s Action Reaction score:

Characters - 6.5/10

Story - 6/10

Action - 7/10

Visuals - 7/10

Soundtrack - 6/10

Overall score: 6.5 out of 10