‘You wanna make an omelette, you gotta kill some people…‘
Action films have had a bit of a renaissance in recent years. Riders of Justice, the John Wick franchise, Mad Max: Fury Road, the work of S. Craig Zahler – all of this points to the classic action movies of the ’80s and ’90s making a comeback. The Gray Man is very much in the tradition of that era. We have two massive movie stars in the shape of Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans. We have an experienced directing team in the Russo Brothers, and we also have a number of exotic foreign locations (Baku, Prague, Vienna etc etc). In short, The Gray Man is another film that suggests that action movies are back, baby!
Six (Gosling) is a former prisoner who is offered the chance of redemption in the form of joining the CIA via father figure Fitzroy (Billy Bob Thornton). When a hit goes south, Six ends up on the run with a psychotic private contractor Lloyd Hansen (Evans) on his tale. Through flashback, we see that Six has a powerful affection for Fitzroy’s young daughter, Claire (Julia Butters) – a weakness that Hansen ruthlessly exploits.
Working from a script from Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely and Joe Russo himself, the Russo brothers take everything they have learnt from the Avengers movies and cherry pick the best bits. Freed from the shackles of serialised storytelling and sanitised relationships, The Gray Man often feels closer in tone to Sin City, or even the aforementioned John Wick franchise – this is a film that is not afraid to explore the darker side of the CIA.
It helps that Gosling, and particularly Evans, are at the absolute top of their respective games here. Liberated from Captain America, Evans puts in a ludicrously over-the-top performance here that brings to mind peak era Nicholas Cage – his grandstanding and peacocking wont be for everyone, but I absolutely lapped it up like the pathetic little dog that I am.
The Gray Man has everything that everyone could ever want from an action film. It’s probably 20 minutes too long, and you will have to leave any concept of plausibility at the door, but if you want something that allows you to switch your brain off and simply enjoy the flashing lights and shiny objects, this is the film for you. And me.