PARKER

I have to admit I was very excited  to see "Parker" coming to the screen. Jason Statham is an actor who essentially plays the same character in all of his films, but he plays that one character well. Then seeing that Taylor Hackford ("Ray", "Proof of Life") was directing my excitement mounted. Then seeing Nick Nolte and Clifton Collins Jr.'s name attached cemented my excitement. How could they go wrong? 

 Then the trailer debuted...

All hope was lost. Statham as an hardened English criminal wearing cowboy boots and a matching accent? Lame.

When a trailer for a film is bad something is wrong. With slick editing and catchy music just about any film can be cut into a decent trailer. How in the hell did they make "Parker" seem so uninteresting? The character of Parker from the books is a hardened criminal. He isn't exactly nice, and while the books are fun reads they aren't exactly uplifting. A witty crime caper with action star Statham in a cowboy hat? No thanks. Ultimately this led me to avoid seeing the film in theaters, and catching it on DVD. 

While probably best that I didn't take out a second mortgage to see this in theaters, it actually turned out to be a well made albeit forgettable film. What hurts the film the most is how jumpy it is. And long. "Parker" is not nearly the fun crime film that the trailer made it out to be, but it's not the hardened criminal getting revenge film it should be either. Given Taylor Hackford's track record I was surprised at how bipolar "Parker" could be at some times. 

As far as the cast is concerned, they do what they can. Statham plays Statham as Parker, which isn't a bad thing. The man has charisma and charm but this isn't a stretch for him. Nick Nolte, Michael Chiklis, and Clifton Collins Jr show up and collect a paycheck. While she takes a lot of shit in the media Jennifer Lopez usually is decent and is no exception here. To be honest she is the most interesting character in the film. 

While it meanders all over the place, "Parker" isn't bad, but it isn't good. Other than one spectacularly brutal fight scene with an underused Daniel Bernhardt (Bloodsport III) "Parker" provides very little in the way of true action. "Parker" is simply light entertainment.