Blu-ray Review: Jason Statham Can’t Keep Dull ‘Parker’ Interesting

CHICAGO – How could a movie based on a Donald Westlake book that includes Michael Chiklis, Wendell Pierce, Nick Nolte, and even Jennifer Lopez in support of Jason Statham be this dull? It feels like “Parker” director Taylor Hackford set out to make an old-fashioned noir but Statham and his team demanded too much of his square-jawed action. The result is a tonally inconsistent film that’s too silly to be called drama but too dull to be called escapism.

Rating: 1.5/5.0

Statham stars as the title character, a morally righteous criminal who seeks revenge on the team of bad guys, including Chiklis and Pierce, who screwed him over after a particularly bad job. Hackford proves unable to manage the tonal shifts here as the brutal fights echo other Statham flicks, Lopez manages to produce some decent character-driven dialogue, Nick Nolte’s character is bizarrely third-tier, and the whole thing ambles to a predictable finale. Bad guy gets screwed over. Bad guy gets revenge. To make that standard of an arc work takes style or at least a memorable action scene or two. I just watched it and other than a shot of a knife going through a hand and J.Lo being asked to prove that she’s not wearing a wire, there’s not a memorable thing about it. And I’ll probably have forgotten those by tomorrow.

Parker was released on Blu-ray and DVD on May 21, 2013
Photo credit: Sony

Synopsis:
Parker (Jason Statham) is a professional thief who lives by a personal code of ethics: Don’t steal from people who can’t afford it and don’t hurt people who don’t deserve it. But on his latest heist, his crew double crosses him, steals his stash, and leaves him for dead. Determined to make sure they regret it, Parker tracks them to Palm Beach, playground of the rich and famous, where the crew is planning their biggest heist ever. Donning the disguise of a rich Texan, Parker takes on an unlikely partner, Leslie (Jennifer Lopez), a savvy insider, who’s short on cash, but big on looks, smarts and ambition. Together, they devise a plan to hijack the score, take everyone down and get away clean. Also starring Michael Chiklis.

Special Features:
o Commentary With Director Taylor Hackford
o Bringing The Hunter To Life: The Making Of Parker
o Who Is Parker?
o The Origin Of Parker
o Broken Necks And Bloody Knuckles

[13]	By BRIAN TALLERICO [14] Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com [13]