2 Guns

Director: Balthazar Kormakur
Starring: Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, Bill Paxton, Edward James Olmos, Paula Patton, James Marsden.
Distributor: Sony Pictures
Runtime: 109 mins. Reviewed in Oct 2013

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Rating notes: Strong violence

There is no subterfuge about the title of this film. It is certainly an action show, with many of the touches of the popular thriller. The two guns of the title are Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg. We see them at the opening in a diner, scouting out a bank in preparation for a robbery. Washington plays the cool sardonic type. Wahlberg is the cheeky comedian.

In fact, the film is often funny, the two stars playing off each other very well, Washington more the straight man, Wahlberg with the cheeky one liners. And they keep up an amusing pace throughout the whole film. This is one of those films where it is better to be tight-lipped about the plot developments.

Perhaps, suffice it to say, that appearances are not what may seem, and there are quite some twists as the plot goes on. This involves Edward James Olmos as a fairly ruthless drug lord, with headquarters in Mexico and a nice quiet suburban home just across the border in the United States – where that bank-to-be-robbed is to be found. Then there is Bill Paxton, coming on strongly about the robbery, after the $43,000,000 plus that was taken away, raises the expectation of the robbers who thought it would be three million dollars.

Paxton can be very nasty in his dealings with and managers, vets who help people on the run, and the drug lords. And then there is the director of the DEA, his assistant, Paula Patton, who controls operations but who does not come up with the help initially promised which leads, of course, to some sticky situations. There is also the naval officer, played by James Marsden, all smiles but ruthless. All the review can do, while not revealing the plot details, is to whet the appetite of readers who may be attracted by this kind of action story, shootouts, as well as the stars. If they do see 2 Guns, they probably won’t be disappointed.