You shouldn’t read anything into the fact that, when playing catch-up on my reviews, I totally forgot I had seen this. It’s actually a really enjoyable diversion. no, it’s not the greatest film in the world, but it’s a highly enjoyable ride. The rapport between Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg is relaxed and easy and, utlimately, the real selling point.
The story is all a bit silly and doesn’t really matter. All you need to know is that at first they Washington and Wahlberg like each other, then hate each other, then reluctantly have to team up. How will they feel about each other at the end? Ooh, it’s such a mystery.
But taking a script that leans on all the conventions can either lead to something very creaky, or to something that has fun with it and this, fortunately, ends up as the latter. I think I’ve said before how much I like Wahlberg on screen and 2 Guns continues the theme. Washington, on the other hand, is someone I can often take or leave. I mean, I respect him – he’s an undoubtedly great actor – but his action thrillers are often less enjoyable than I feel they should be, taking themselves a little too seriously. Here, though, he is having fun, and his magnetism on screen shines through.
And while the film doesn’t do anything special in the story or character terms, it does bring some fresh images the screen in a few little chase sequences – one in the desert and one through a cowshed spring to mind – and when dealing with such standard material as this, a little innovation in the way things are shot is a massive bonus.
So all told, it’s nothing special, but it’s enough fun to be worth catching if you get the chance.
B
Film length: 1hr 49mins – Feels like: 1hr 40 mins
