MA Confidential.
111 Mins. Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Winston Duke, Ilizer Shlesinger, Marc Maron, Austin Post, Bokeem Woodbine & Alan Arkin. Director: Peter Berg.
Corona coming to cinemas near you soon has stopped many of your favourite film franchises from seeing the darkened room (who's that coughing?) light of day...not to make light of the very serious subject (wash those hands). James Bond's license to kill for 'No Time To Die' has been revoked in what seems like no time at all. The latest 'Fast and Furious' has stalled and will remain in the shop for a year (who thought some Corona wouldn't be welcome at Dominic Toretto's salut table?). And even John Krasinski and Emily Blunt's 'A Quiet Place' sequel has been silenced too like the disguised 'Mulan'. What's next? 'Wonder Woman' being pushed back in time all the way to 1984? I went to see 'Judy' in Japan the other day and could barely find a seat to book. But when I got there only four other people showed up. It was raining heavy outside but still. I guess we should have paid more clean bill of health attention to Steven Soderbergh's 'Contagion' 9 years ago. Quite possibly the most scariest film I've ever seen and I only just watched 'The Shining' for the first time last year (heeeeeere's Diphtheria). Add that I'm a wuss when it comes to even the tamest of horror movies too. Like hiding behind a sofa that's already hiding behind another previous sofa sort of thing. Forget 20 seconds. I'm going to wash my hands to the entirety of this movie. Okaaaaay (Trump "and we're clear" voice) I guess we are all quarantining and chilling with Netflix now. Which means we have a wealth of films to stream ('Uncut Gems') and some to scroll through (almost every other Adam Sandler movie on there). And now the budget best boy's DiCaprio and Scorsese, Boston actor/director pairing of Mark Wahlberg and Peter Berg reunite for the fifth time for your smartphones on your people-less commutes to the one thing that hasn't shut down and closed...your job. Following their brilliant big-three of real life people prevailing over disasters ('Lone Survivor', 'Deepwater Horizon', 'Patriots Day'), they have now moved to the big action entertaining stakes with 'Mile-22' and the rabbit hole characters of the former Tampa Tribune crime reporter (so you know he knows his s###) Ace Atkins' novel 'Wonderland' adaptation of this by the book 'Spenser Confidential'. All in a rush 48 hours for these bad boys for life as Marky Mark screams, "now that's how you throw a f###### punch" like Will Smith, "from now on THAT'S how you punch!"
Flaring nostrils, that zoomed in heavy breathing thing and asking how your mothers doing, 'The Departed' actor Mark Wahlberg is like the Boston boy who grew up off the 'Rocky' and 'Rambo' of Sly Stallone and made it. If his 'Pain and Gain' co-star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson is the new Arnold Schwarzenegger last action hero like Anthony Mackie the star spangled new Captain America, then 'Broken City' star Wahlberg is the local, working class hero, old fashioned meat and potatoes action actor. As 'Ted' Boston as 'Sweet Caroline' ("a ba, ba, baa"), looking for his next franchise like 'Transformers', Wahlberg in a truck that Optimus Prime would be jealous of Fenway's it out the park. When he's not hitting everyone else in the restaurant like todays special, taking out tables like "whose picking up THIS cheque". This is classic Wahlberg for a man who has more ('The Other Guys') movies ('Daddy's Home') than ('Shooter') you ('The Gambler') give ('We Own The Night') him ('The Italian Job') due ('Boogie Nights') credit ('Contraband') for ('Three Kings'). We could do this all day like we can't wait for his 'Tuff Juice' Caron Butler biopic based on the NBA legends autobiography that he wants a name like Michael B. Jordan for. The blurb at the back of this guys DVDs will make for a paragraph that's getting even longer, even in a paraphrase...if those things still exist with this Netflix movie today. There's not many harder working. Even in the Affleck and Damon Beantown hunting for good will. This feels like Mark's 'Jack Reacher' series or a lighter version of the kind of 'Blood Work' former cop characters come P.I.'s like Magnum that Clint Eastwood would go after, getting to the bones of. It's almost like the easy hit fun of the' 2 Guns' sequel we wish we got with Denzel Washington for Wahlberg's 'Equalizer' in Mass like 'Black'. And the classic car rolling through the city beginnings to Ben E. King's 'Supernatural Thing' stands by the Detroit piston Motown motoring one of his 'Four Brothers', Marvin Gaye 'Trouble Man' iconic opening. One that sees him drive home from prison to the town all over again in a skyline landscape best described in Boston, Aerosmith bad boy, rock God Steven Tyler's 'Does The Noise In My Head Bother You' loud autobiography ("And just then the highway opened up-right at the junction, right at that spot on the highway where you see the skyline of Boston and you go, "What!?" Because it suddenly goes from trees, woods, and crickets to cars flashing by and skyscrapers and apartment buildings"). All the way to the 'Sweet Emotion' of a Beantown soundtrack that sings like Red's cigar when the Celtics owned the parquet. Now tell me this Boston boy ain't the beans. "Don't do it Spense. Don't do it Spense," Al Arkin warns Wahlberg as he watches the injustice of the news as he knows he's about to take the case. Whereas we're like the 'Starsky and Hutch' of Ben Stiller. As you will be when you spend some time with Spenser.
'Black Panther' scene stealer and Jordan Peele 'Us' favorite Winston Duke-going crazy and yellow jacket and dread locked looking like he's about to star in the next T-Pain biopic-runs this show too. As the new buddy cop dynamic, perfect partnership get behind the big wheels of a trucks Black Betty flaps like "bam-a-lam" for a blam, blam, "whoa, whoa" finale with all that horsepower. Duking it out, Winston is the perfect big partner here like Anthony Davis to LeBron James (sorry Boston, I love you, but I am a Laker after all). 'Panther' panting hilarious as this odd couple tries to room together and a formidable force when it's comes to the fisticuffs following 'The Fighter' training of Mark Wahlberg for this warrior who wants to be the MMA's King James (sorry Boston). But when it comes to hawking a shotgun and sawing off cat doodles into gangsters sports car doors, this guy could take you out with a single nod and turn the biggest hitman into a vegetarian. It's his one/two punch with Wahlberg that really hits like its about to deliver a sequel for a great cast like the one he leaves the bad guys in when he slings. There's the hilarious 'Last Comic Standing' Ilizer Shlesinger-actually the real scene stealer here-cracking wise with the best jokes. Hash-tag: Best Comedian. Asking Al Arkin if he's engaged in some "ass play" will play in the greatest hits of your laugh box for weeks. That legend is here too like 'Argo' "go f### yourself" and he has some of the best one liners to boot. Even if another stand up guy in the marvellous Marc Maron who had a bit in 'The Joker' is on microphone hand. Just like the rock and rap star of Post Malone himself Austin Post, in a great double cameo for the latest rapper to ink his reputation as an actor like the statements on his face behind the perspex of this penetentiary. But it's the always awesome 'Fargo' show star Bokeem Woodbine (remember his distinct voice as the Shocker in 'Spider-Man: Homecoming'? DAMN!) who really sets the scene and the catalyst of these classic cop character arcs and themes. Which aren't tired tropes when lulled awake by the hands of an actor as acclaimed as this. Some Netflix movies get lost in the 'Velvet Buzzsaw' of this swipe left age, but not everything can be 'The Irishman', 'Marriage Story', or even 'Roma'. Sometimes you need some 'Shaft' sequels, '6 Underground' or 'Triple Frontier's' for your, "there's nothing on and the cinema has coronavirus" nights. And even if Wahl/Berg's latest collabo doesn't reach the emotional, heroic heights of the soldiering 'Lone Survivor', the oil spill struggle of the slick 'Deepwater Horizon' and the city over terrorism testament of the race against time to hunt for the Boston Marathon bombers in 'Patriots Day' (perhaps Wahlberg's best mark yet), it's still a fun and funny flick to pass the time just fine (that face it we all need right now like we don't extra toilet roll you selfish, panic, bulk buying s###s) from the 'Battleship' and 'Hancock' director, even if it doesn't mean more like 'The Kingdom'. And looking worthy of a trilogy, or next to the kinetic 'Mile 22', down the road, pulling the horn of Black Betty we can't wait to see what they have next for their new big three. Let's not keep this Spenser confidential. Don't do it. TIM DAVID HARVEY.
Further Filming: 'Mile 22', '2 Guns', 'Bad Boys For Life'.
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