Review: The Equalizer 2

About as dull and boring a film as one can get, The Equalizer 2 has the distinction of being the first (and hopefully last) sequel of Denzel Washington's career. It does boggle the mind a bit that Washington has gone for nearly four decades without anchoring a franchise and that he would choose to make a follow-up to one of his more middling actioners. One supposes that it provides him with another chance to work with director Antoine Fuqua, who previously directed him in Training Day, The Magnificent Seven, and The Equalizer. Still, there's no denying that this is the weakest of their collaborations.

Washington once again plays Robert McCall, the widowed and retired CIA operative who brandishes his special set of skills to set the world to rights. Instead of working at a Home Mart hardware store, he is now a Lyft driver helping those in need like the Holocaust survivor (Orson Bean) looking for his missing sister, and exacting justice on behalf of those who can't, such as an intern abused by a bunch of entitled douche bags. He also serves as a mentor to local teen Miles (Ashton Sanders), who may end up being a gang member if he's not careful. The film may have done better to focus on this particular relationship since Sanders, so moving in Moonlight, manages to shade a generically written character and Miles is of the few genuine connections McCall is allowed to have in this film.

The other would be his friend and CIA contact, Susan Plummer (Melissa Leo), whose murder compels him into tracking down those responsible for her death. Unfortunately, this does not help the film become any more interesting or propulsive. For one thing, the perpetrator is glaringly evident from the jump. For another, the bad guy simply isn't bad enough. The Equalizer at least had the benefit of Marton Csokas' palpably smarmy and highly dangerous fixer. He made for a formidable opponent, but McCall has no such match here.

There is one fairly suspenseful sequence involving McCall remotely guiding Miles to a panic room inside his apartment as armed men enter, but otherwise The Equalizer 2 is resolutely uninspired work from all involved.

The Equalizer 2

Directed by: Antoine Fuqua

Written by: Richard Wenk, Michael Sloan, Richard Lindheim

Starring: Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Ashton Sanders, Bill Pullman, Melissa Leo, Orson Bean, Sakina Jaffrey, Jonathan Scarfe