's praises as one of the greatest actors of all time are sung from the theatre stage to in front and behind the movie camera. A prolific actor across several genres, Denzel Washington's strength as a leading action star is rarely touted despite starring in a long list of excellent action films, including five from the late great . Fortunately, in 2014, when he reunited with his director, , he finally received the action franchise his illustrious career deserved. "They want me to go get the bad guys," said Denzel Washington when he confirmed that there would be two new Equalizer films (and). Before 2018's , Washington had never starred in a sequel to one of his films, and now, having completed a trilogy, he plans to bless audiences with two more bouts of "equalizing."
In the film series, based on the 1980s CBS television series of the same name, the two-time Oscar winner plays Robert McCall, an ex-marine and intelligence officer who uses his training to protect those who can't protect themselves. Each film in the franchise is an entertaining and excellently action-choreographed feat of revenge and street justice. While Antoine Fuqua directs all three films, they vary in entertainment value and quality thanks to each film's cast, storylines and, of course, the excitement of their action scenes. , story, memorability, and, of course, Denzel Washington's performance, proving why this trilogy has become one of the best in modern action cinema.
finds Robert McCall, years after faking his own death to live peacefully with his wife, mourning her recent loss. He is a noble and righteous man with a strong sense of morality and an even stronger desire to finish his wife's attempt at the "100 Books Everybody Should Read" list. He works at a hardware superstore and reads at a café at night due to his insomnia. It is at this café that Robert meets Teri (), whose plight will begin Robert's equalizing origin story.
While unfortunately released weeks apart from another stylish, franchise-setting, gun-totting revenge movie, The Equalizer is . The gravitas and experience Oscar winner and the ever-underrated bring to their characters is a welcome addition to the film. David Harbour provides an interesting secondary antagonist as a corrupt police officer. However, despite these interesting ingredients, The Equalizer's main draw remains . The film's climatic third-act action siege occurs in Robert's hardware store and simultaneously evokes both and in its execution. While in the franchise, The Equalizer succeeds as an excellent action revenge thriller. Following the evidence in this first film, it's no surprise that audiences have continued to show up for every entry in the entertaining franchise.
21 years after the excellent , Denzel Washington and the beloved reunited in Italy for . It's not like Washington needs a scene partner to make a film interesting, but when a film presents a character and an actor able to match his screen presence, it's always better for it. After sustaining possibly fatal injuries on his latest mission at a Sicilian winery, Robert is rescued and nursed back to health by a small-town doctor. Through his recuperation, he becomes closer to the townspeople and is seduced by the idea of finally retiring. To wrap up his equalizing duties, he makes an anonymous phone call to a CIA officer, Emma Collins (Dakota Fanning), to inform her about the winery and its connection to an illegal drug trade. Unfortunately, in his retirement, Robert notices a local gang terrorizing the townspeople, and Emma's curiosity about Robert leads her to the town.
As they famously did two decades prior, in their scenes together. The film's action sequences are again expertly choreographed, and the Italian coast, shot by three-time Academy Award winner ,presents a welcome and beautiful change to the staple American backdrop of the first two films. The Equalizer 3's biggest emotional payoff comes at the end when it is revealed that——Dakota Fanning's character is the daughter of the late Susan Plummer (Melissa Leo), Robert's only friend who dies in the second movie. It's and a successful expansion of its lore, hinting at a larger and more comprehensive world in future installments.
Following the events of the first installment, Denzel Washington's Robert McCall begins The Equalizer 2 as a fully-fledged vigilante. Using his position as a Lyft driver to ascertain those who need his help the most, he goes to great lengths to anonymously help the helpless and dish out his unique sense of justice to the wrongdoers. As with the other films in the franchise, The Equalizer 2 features sentimental subplots that show the full extent of Robert McCall's character. In the film, he mentors an artistic teen who lives in his neighborhood, played by Ashton Sanders, and attempts to reconnect an elderly Holocaust survivor (Orson Bean) with his long-lost sister. However, when Susan, Robert's former colleague (and his only friend), is murdered, it gives the film a more personal reason for Robert's revenge missions.
These ingredients are enough to produce an entertaining revenge action flick, but The Equalizer 2 sits at the top of the pile for one reason: no other film in the franchise has Pedro Pascal being this good! Pascal plays Dave York, Robert's former partner, and originally unbeknownst to Robert, Susan's murderer. Pascal goes toe-to-toe with Washington throughout the film (no mean feat) and is believable as the good-hearted Intelligence officer for most of the twisty and action-packed story. But with his heel turn, the Emmy nominee unlocks new layers of the character's villainy, desperation, and fear. All of this leads up to an electric, over-the-top, cathartic and explosion-heavy, gun-fight third act that would make the biggest action fans jump for joy. The Equalizer 2 is the perfect blend of high-octane action and emotionally resonant storytelling, cementing itself as the best entry in the series—so far, anyway.
NEXT: Denzel Washington Added This Key Element to His Character in 'The Equalizer'
