Film Review: The Equalizer 2

The Equalizer was a somewhat middling dad action movie that was elevated by a charismatic Denzel Washington performance. I can pretty much repeat all that for the sequel, The Equalizer 2. It’s exactly what you think it is, and if you liked the first one, I don’t see much reason why you wouldn’t have a good time with this one. But I guess I’ll get into more detail for formality’s sake.

The new film once again follows the exploits of Robert McCall (Denzel Washington) as he tries to live a simple life, helping the friends and neighbors around him, and occasionally having to do so by violent means. When Susan Plummer (Melissa Leo) gets murdered, he finds himself having to seek out the folks responsible.

There really isn’t much to the film beyond that. There are several subplots, some more necessary than others, but like the original, it plays like a classic vigilante thriller. The issues are basically the same. Like with most of director Antoine Fuqua’s movies, it wildly overlong and weirdly paced. However, I would say the pacing is at least more consistent with this one, finding a groove in building to the action sequences while also taking the time to create emotional weight with Robert’s relationships to the various individuals in the film that take focus.

The best of these is the one involving Robert’s neighbor, Miles (Ashton Sanders), a young artist who is at risk of falling in with the wrong crowd. It’s also the only subplot that matters in the grand scheme of things since he does end up being captured by the villains during the climax. Sanders made a huge impression with Moonlight a couple years ago, and while this isn’t necessarily the most profound material, he treats it like gospel, and brings an emotional heft that ends up being surprisingly effective.

I recall being hard on the first because it was an in-name-only adaptation of the 80s show, but it’s clear that Fuqua and returning screenwriter, Richard Wenk, are far more interested in creating this different sort of vibe, and I’ve made my peace with that. I like that this series is driven by character, and that it’s willing to take its time to build its characters and show why Robert goes out of his way to help them and better the community, even if the execution leaves more to be desired. Plus, it’s hard to get annoyed when you have such an incredibly captivating lead performance by one of the beat actors in the world. Only someone as seasoned a performer as Denzel Washington could sell some of the strange idiosyncrasies of this version of Robert, and his straight-faced commitment to some insane action beats will never not be amusing.

So, while the pacing and runtime isn’t ideal, Fuqua absolutely brings it with the action. The juxtaposition between Robert’s precision and the brutality of the violence is a delight to watch for a weirdo like me. And once again, the third act action set piece turns Robert into a full blown slasher villain, but instead of a Home Depot like in the first, he hunts a bunch of dudes down in an abandoned town…in the middle of a hurricane! It’s as cool as it sounds, and the kills are gnarly and weird in their specificity. The other action beats are more than solid too, with a highlight being a sequence where a man is attempting to kill Robert while in the guise of being one of his Lyft passengers.

I’m still not fully convinced that there’s enough material here to mine for an entire franchise, but it’s got a cool vibe to it, and Denzel Washington is effortlessly watchable, which is true of any context, but this is where he really allows his screen presence to shine. Fuqua remains a white-knuckled action director who has some crazy imagination when it comes to brutalizing the human body. It’s flawed, but mostly rock solid and totally functional. If they made another one, I wouldn’t mind seeing it. It’s especially not bad for Washington’s first sequel.