"The film doesn’t try to be anything it isn’t – it’s fun, unsentimental and unpretentious"
Jason Statham has surely become the most typecast actor in Hollywood (although I’m sure he doesn’t mind - it does provide him with work after all). More often that not, he plays the silent, brooding characters, who despite always seeming like they are lost in deep thought, are violent and vicious murderers. In this instance he plays the part of Arthur Bishop, unsurprisingly a quiet, somewhat solicitous individual, who cares for one thing and one thing only; his work – assassination. He is the best in the business, yet when he is assigned to kill his joint-boss and companion Harry (Donald Sutherland) things start to get interesting, particularly when he agrees to help Harry’s son Steve (Ben Foster), in helping him avenge his father’s killer – who just happens to be himself.
Although based on the 1972 hit with the same name, featuring a certain Charles Bronson, The Mechanic feels fresh and original and certainly adapts well to its modern surroundings, although I guess that when it comes to action thrillers, particularly those which are centred around hit men simply murdering people, the story essentially becomes timeless.
The film doesn’t try to be anything it isn’t – it’s fun, unsentimental and unpretentious, and all about the action. However, it lacks any real character and doesn’t really relate to the audience. The detachment is a good thing in regards to its lack of a romantic storyline, but it then needs to be more deep and perhaps more profound in other areas, otherwise it distances itself from the audience who fail to relate to any of the characters or themes. The character of Steve is as close as we get to sympathy, as following the murder of his father we see a man in decline, but the character himself admits to not really knowing his father before his death, which makes it difficult to feel too sympathetic towards his mission of revenge.
It was, however, refreshing to see an action movie which didn’t concern itself with a pointless, sentimental love affair. In many cases, even within the genre of action thrillers, the lead male will kill, run away, and then at the end, after much murder and violence, finally gets what he wants; the girl. However, the Mechanic avoids such stereotypes and doesn’t waste time with love, and instead focuses solely on the action – which, essentially, is what people are paying to see.
There is a hint of romance when Arthur spends time with a local prostitute, but it’s hardly romantic and is barely touched upon within the film. In fact, I don’t even think we know the girl’s name until the credits roll (it’s Sarah, by the way).
The Mechanic is just a bit of fun. It’s enjoyable to watch and easy to follow, but it’s also quite forgettable. It doesn’t provide anything too different and nothing ground-breaking, but then again it doesn’t really attempt to be. It’s just enjoyable action, and undemanding of its viewers, which I suppose, in a way, is all you’re expecting from such a film.
