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The surprise action film trend continues where menial everyday jobs become the titles for action flicks. From The Beekeeper to The Bricklayer, the thing to do nowadays is make the story’s hero a retired bad ass who is now making a legit living doing a master trade as they try to forget about their violent pasts and what they did. It’s an honest way to propel a plot along and of course, the former killer’s life comes back to bite him/her in the ass as they must now dust the dirt and grime off their particular lethal skill set as they go out to run the gauntlet on a mission of vengeance and violence.
I must admit that the particular entry in this subgenre slipped under my radar when it was coming out to the point where I didn’t even release a trailer release post for it back then but I’m here to officially say that this one is a nice and exciting surprise. The film in question is called…wait for it…The Painter. Yes, first we had Statham tending to his bees and then Eckhart laying bricks and now we have Charlie Weber as a painter with a spec op past that, you know it, comes back to try and take him out as he’s just trying to live out the rest of his days in peace and quiet.
It’s peace and quiet that Weber’s character Peter Barret needs as he suffers from a serious ear condition he suffered as a child when he was the victim of a terrorist bombing that also killed his parents. Barret is sort of a daredevil, who like Matt Murdock, has hyper senses due to the accident that damaged his ears and hearing. He’s not blind but as a direct result, he hears everything. Barret has honed his powers to the point that it has made him a secret and lethal weapon for his government and his adoptive father Byrne (Jon Voight) who works for the CIA. Barret is very good at killing and has since become the agency’s golden boy.
The movie opens up with Peter on a secret mission that unfortunately culminates in the shooting of his pregnant wife Elena (Rryla McIntosh) who also is a CIA agent. The incident costs them the life of their child and relationship forcing Peter into exile in the middle of nowhere where he succumbs to his skills as a painter.
Everything changes when a young teenage girl named Sophia (Madison Bailey) comes calling saying that she is the daughter of Elena. At first Barret knows this couldn’t be true as his baby died as a result of the shooting, but he doesn’t have time to process as a CIA wet team comes barging in guns blazing forcing Peter to unleash his dormant skills of fury and go on the run with Sophia with the agency hot on their trail.
From the get-go, you know what type of film you’re getting into when you rent or buy The Painter. It’s the tried-and-true story of a former killing machine who must be reactivated to save himself and a youngster from the corrupt forces that be as the air is filled with bullets and death. The saving grace here is the subplot of Peter and his condition which makes him even better than those trying to kill him, and this was a refreshing aspect of a plot that has been done to death. Throw in entertaining and tightly choreographed action set pieces and this one is a good time for action genre fans.
In the lead is Charlie Weber who is no stranger to action having starred in Jarhead 3: the Siege which also featured action star Scott Adkins. That film from action maestro and director William Kaufman is a favorite of mine in the DTV world and Weber is in fine action form once again as Peter, the ex operative with super hearing. Weber put the work in here as he looks and feels like a combat trained killing bad ass and he excels in the film’s numerous close quarters battles that involve high powered rifles, knives and unarmed combat in the vein of John Wick. Yes, there may be those that are turned off by the resemblance to Mr. Wick and the action in those films but here it’s executed nicely with Weber showing respect to the action and choreography.
Weber is surrounded by a decent supporting cast including Hollywood icon Jon Voight who stars as Peter’s adoptive CIA father Byrne. Voight is a legend and here he is present throughout a lot of the movie and not just for name recognition and you’re never quite sure whose side Byrne is on until the big reveal at the end. Voight assembles his Oscar caliber gravitas here even well into his years and it’s always a pleasure to see him still making movies.
We also Madison Bailey as Sophia, the mysterious teenager who comes calling forcing Peter on the run and the two do share some solid chemistry throughout as they spend the most screentime together. Bailey plays Sophia as a troubled girl just trying to find her mother who has gone missing, and she offers some attitude to the proceedings as she has no problems telling Barret how she feels. She also features heavily into the plot as well.
Rounding out the cast is Max Montesi who is known as The Ghost, an assassin sent to eradicate Peter and Sophia. His character is a little over the top and I did find him annoying many times throughout, but he does have some good scenes especially the climate showdown with Peter.
Maria Avgeropoulos (Jiu Jitsu, King of Killers) is vicious and ruthless as CIA section chief Naomi Piasecki who wants nothing more than to catch Barret and Sophia and shut them up for good. There’s no denying that she’s no good and Avgeropoulos chews up the scenery every chance she gets while also factoring into the movie’s revealing plot in the last third of the movie.
Like I stated, The Painter offers nothing original in the sense of what it has to offer plot wise but that’s OK because it features some quality production values, solid action from the cast, cinematography and above all, brutal and enjoyable action sequences. In other words, you could do a lot worse than this one and for a brisk running time of 100 minutes, it’s never dull even in the quitter moments and there’s enough violent action peppered throughout to satisfy until the finale which also delivers the carnage and mayhem.
The action is, once again, solid and satisfying with Weber utilizing his ears to always be one step ahead of the commandos sent to terminate him and Sophia. Action fans are treated to fierce firefights, CQB hand to hand action and most impressive of all, fierce knife fights that deliver. If you know me, then you know I love well done knife fights and here we get them in spades. Yes, this movie borrows heavily from John Wick in the sense of Gun Fu, but it’s done well so i had more than a good time with it. The blood is mostly of, and muzzle flashes are of the standard CGI variety, but it’s actually done well, and I wasn’t distracted by any of it. The inevitable showdown between Peter and The Ghost is well played a s well with tight choreography and a little homage to John Woo thrown in for the right amount of good measure.
I won’t spoil anything here but there is a subplot that is driving the action here and it does involve the CIA using Barret’s abilities to make more of his kind in an attempt to make unstoppable assassins. When it comes to light, the pieces do fall into place, and I felt it was another stand out to a familiar action plot. I’m not going to lie as things are left a little open for more to come and I would like to see more of Peter and this world.
Overall, it’s a shame that The Painter slipped past me at first as it’s a solid entry in the government assassin action movie. Charlie Weber is all in as Peter and he kills it (pun intended) in the action sequences that light up the screen with Gun Fu and Knife Fu and tightly choreographed bloodshed. Many will pass this off as another John Wick clone in terms of the adrenaline, but I felt it was done well to warrant more viewings. It’s not boring and the pacing is tighter than a lot of other action movies I’ve seen later so hopefully this review will get more people to check it out. It’s nothing original but it’s still a fun ride with a solid cast and a little brutal action that does stand out from other films like this.
VERDICT: 3.5 Out of 5 Stars
Charlie Weber excels in a solid actioner that utilizes Gun Fu and Knife Fu to massive effect in a solid DTV actioner that is worth your time.
