'The Mechanic'
(Jason Statham, Ben Foster, Donald Sutherland, Tony Goldwyn, Jeff Chase, et al / R / 89 mins)
Overview: Seasoned hitman Arthur Bishop (Jason Statham) sets out to avenge the brutal murder of his mentor, Harry (Donald Sutherland), and finds himself joined by Harry's vengeful son (Ben Foster), who is eager to follow in his late father's footsteps, in this remake of the 1972 action thriller starring Charles Bronson and Jan-Michael Vincent. Harry taught Arthur how to be a detached killer who always hits his mark. Now Harry is gone, and for the first time in Arthur's career it's about to get personal.
Verdict: If you have ever liked anything Jason Statham has starred in, than you wont want to miss 'The Mechanic!'! There's enough live action and explosives to please anyone!
Of course, although I didn't see the original, I know Charles Bronson played the title role and that Jan-Michael Vincent was in the original playing the character Ben Foster now plays. However, other than those most basic facts, I don't know anything about the first The Mechanic, so this review is in no way a comparison of the two versions.
Jason Statham's made a living - and a very good one at that - taking on bad-ass characters you'd be stupid to want to land on the wrong side of in feature films. Statham's got the sneer down pat and the effectiveness of his...keeping it G-rated...'Don't mess with me' glare has made him one of the go-to actors for starring roles in action films.
And with The Mechanic just about all Statham's counted on to do is look fierce while the body count piles up, which makes him perfect for the role.
Here, The Mechanic throws in a totally unnecessary not love but lust story involving Statham and a woman he repeatedly visits for sex. It also thuds over a few rough patches in the second act and, as I already pointed out, the dialogue is just filler in between action sequences. But, those action sequences don't disappoint.