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Peppermint
(STX Films/Lakeshore Entertainment)
By Lucas Allen
If you’ve been waiting a long time since the end of the TV series “Alias” to see Jennifer Garner return to the world of action, then you’ll likely find something to enjoy in the new revenge/thriller “Peppermint.”
From the director of the first (and only good film in the trilogy) “Taken” film, the movie follows the similar structure as “Death Wish,” whichever version you think of, but with a brutal edge. The star may be selling the movie, but the movie itself may not be doing much else.
Riley North (Garner) lives a happy, ordinary life with her loving husband Chris (Jeff Hephner) and daughter Carly (Cailey Fleming). During her daughter’s birthday night at a carnival, she witnesses the two of them getting gunned down by three thugs. It turns out the hit was made by the notorious leader of a drug cartel, Diego Garcia (Juan Pablo Raba), who Chris was allegedly planning to rob to help his family.
Though the gunmen are caught, they’re let go by a corrupt lawyer and judge paid off by Garcia himself. Five years later, Riley returns to Los Angeles a different woman after hiding off the grid for that long. She’s trained herself in both hand-to-hand combat and weapons expertise to go after those who wronged her.
Her actions catch the attention of LAPD detectives Stan Carmichael (John Gallagher Jr.) and Moises Beltran (John Ortiz), who are determined to stop her before the killings get worse. But she remains one step ahead of the authorities as she inches closer to the cartel leader responsible for everything.
It’s no doubt that Garner carries this film with her dramatic acting and brutal intensity that made her a star to begin with. Using her knack for high kicks and punches, she still brings the pain at age 46, proving that action heroes can be great at any age.
There are some good fight scenes to keep you entertained for the duration of its hour-and-a-half run time. Some of the editing in those scenes feels pretty choppy, but they still get the point across that it’s not all bothering.
The script however feels like a half-baked “Death Wish” clone, which makes the recent Bruce Willis remake look like the Charles Bronson original in comparison. While Garner’s still great, her character’s actions and motivations paints her as more of a psychopath than a vigilante. Worse, we don’t see her exact revenge on every single person who wronged her, which makes the entire thing feel pretty unsatisfying. It’s like the filmmakers were trying to rush the story along to make it to 90 minutes, which proves to be a bad idea.
Maybe a story like this would’ve worked better as a Netflix series that you can binge watch in a single day. Not to mention, Garner seems to be surrounded by talented actors who couldn’t elevate all their characters no matter how hard they’ve tried. The detective characters are two dimensional TV quality, while the villains are stock and unrealistic to the point they would’ve fit more in a Will Ferrell action/comedy.
It’s embarrassing to watch good actors waste their work on such an inept project. “Peppermint” could’ve worked had they put more effort in story and character than focus more on the star and action. However, whatever potential is squashed by the film making incompetence from those who made better movies. This is easily one of the low points in the action movies of 2018.
THE MOVIE’S RATING: R (for strong violence and language throughout)
THE CRITIC’S RATING: 1.75 Stars (Out of Four)
