H hath some fury: A review of 'Wrath of Man'

You’d be wrong on both accounts.

In this remake of an obscure 2004 French film “Cash Truck,” Ritchie ditches most of his trademark wideboy comedy crime caper fun for an intense, grim, almost funereal revenge flick. Not to say that’s necessarily a negative, as he is mostly successful giving us a paint-by-numbers yet relentlessly action packed experience.

Ritchie deploys a handful of techniques from the school of Michael Mann, even to the point of setting the tale in a distinctly post-industrial Los Angeles rather than the usual London.

Moments into the movie, we are in the midst of a violent armored truck robbery. Interestingly, we experience it from the point of view of not the robbers, guards or even the cops, but from inside the back of the truck where the money sits. An interesting and disconcerting choice this is. We get only a partial picture of what’s happening as the criminals attempt to penetrate the truck’s defenses and terrorize the hapless guards inside. We hear snippets of profane dialogue. Snippets of chaos. Sounds of violence. Gun shots. But we don’t know exactly what’s happening.

It’s a pretty explosive first act, and serves as the crux of the story. We eventually come back to it from different viewpoints.

A few months later, we meet the main character Patrick Hill, played by Jason Statham. It’s his first day on the job with the same security company that was robbed. His new co-workers nickname him H. He tries a little too hard to appear average, but it’s Statham, so we know that’s a ruse.

When H and his colleagues become targeted for yet another robbery (by the way, how many armored truck robberies actually occur in L.A.?), he shows off a “very particular set of skills” and fends off the would-be thieves with relative ease, impressing his bosses and co-workers. Who is H, everyone wonders. Undercover cop? Secret vigilante? A crazy thrill seeker?

This is an understated Statham performance, not because of any weakness in his acting, but because of the role. Sure, the action flick physicality and ferocity are there, but missing are the charm, the fun, the quotable quips that Statham has traded in since “The Transporter.”

The surrounding cast, while talented, is not afforded much to work with. They’re two-dimensional pieces, working only to propel the story forward. But that’s fine. This isn’t an acting showcase. The story is the thing here.

The big picture, once revealed, isn’t too complex. Ritchie flexes his mastery of nonlinear sequencing, and if you get off your mobile devices and actually pay attention, it’s not too hard to follow. The script, which he co-wrote with Marn Davies and Ivan Atkinson, is chock full of some clever turns of phrases, most of which are too profane to repeat here. There are some off-putting scenes of violence that serve to flesh out the characters, but they can be a bit much.

Although I viewed the film on a home streaming screener, the cinematography (Alan Stewart) and soundtrack (Christopher Benstead) are very much suited to a real theater experience. The action scenes would be well worth it.

“Wrath of Man” was originally slated for a January release, the dump month when supposedly the least favored films get jettisoned by studios. COVID’s impact moved the film to the premier early blockbuster period of May, so this may actually work to its advantage.

It deserves the superior spot.