4. The Enforcer; movie review

 

THE ENFORCER

Cert 18

90 mins

BBFC advice: Contains sexual violence, strong violence

Boy, Antonio Banderas is a handsome fella.

Regardless of the demands of his movie role, he always looks as if the word suave was invented especially for him.

Thus, he fits perfectly into The Enforcer - where even the extras must have been required to pass a beauty barometer.

Yep, even the scrapyard fighters have perfect hair and dentist-model teeth.

Anyway, Banderas stars as the title character - a paid or sometimes unpaid veteran killer in a sharp suit and classic car who is employed by a vicious crime boss/night club owner (Kate Bosworth).

She is also keen to hire some new young muscle so lures a willing but naive puncher called Stray (Mojean Aria).

The experienced hand takes him under his wing while simultaneously trying to push him towards a better life.

Miami is the glamorous if merciless backdrop of Richard Hughes' film and gorgeous people swill around its beachside.

These include a vulnerable teenager (Zolee Griggs) for whom Banderas's gunman feels heavy pangs of pastoral care.

The Enforcer is a combination of hard-edged aggression and a slab of pathos as the assassin reappraises his life choices.

It is not going to appear in front of any award judges but we found the story compelling and, despite his ruthlessness, we unexpectedly fell for Banderas's lead.

And, at 90 minutes, it goes along at quite a lick.

Reasons to watch: The beautiful people

Reasons to avoid: One-dimensional characters

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: None

Nudity: Yes

Overall rating: 6.5/10

Did you know? Antonio Banderas only got into acting after a chance encounter with director Pedro Almodóvar, who told him: "You have a very romantic face. You should do movies," after walking by him in the street.

The final word. Richard Hughes: "Anything that I work on has to have a heartbeat and some sort of emotional call that you can connect and the moral compass. Cuda (Antonio Banderas) is a big part of that."

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