2 Guns Review

9th Aug 2013

Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg are no strangers to thriller territory. The two come together for this fairly light, adult themed and often hilarious buddy-buddy movie.

Right from the get go we see that the pair have little to no issue communicating with each other on screen with a chemistry you can just tell is going to fizz throughout. Both are apparently working on the wrong side of the law working on various deals with various shady characters. But not too long into the plot and we find that both have a secret agenda that threatens to upset the other. It’s only when both are turn upon by their own superiors that they are forced back together to solve their issues and naturally “work things out.”

Director Baltasar Kormakur worked with Wahlberg last year on Contraband (A decent enough remake from an Icelandic original which balanced threat, humour, action and character). Here he graduates with honours and with more flare. Again he is working with a variety of colourful supporting characters, his camera gets glossy when it needs to and gritty when dirt is called upon to hit the screen.

Ok the bad guys are sometimes undersold (James Marsden all but wasted) where others get more meat (Bill Paxton going full throttle, Edward James Olmos perhaps a little too laid back).

What really sells 2 Guns (cause it sure isn’t the title) is that while it swims in very familiar buddy-buddy shores, it often changes it’s stroke, upsetting the predictable nature of its plot mechanics. The issue with such wild and divergent plot antics is that you can often find yourself stopping and starting on a regular basis from the thrills, comedy and quieter moments. Thankfully Washington and Wahlberg manage to keep it entertaining. True Washington gets more pathos, but Wahlberg steals most of the laughs with some truly terrific dialogue and a very childlike and carefree attitude. Anyone who remembers The Big Hit will enjoy the kinetic energy in the action here, as well as the off-beat laughter. But it’s great to see Marky Mark really not giving a crap and just throwing himself at such a humorous character.