Netflix’s original movies have recently made a splash. The movie “6 Underground” starring Ryan Reynolds made an appearance on social media. Even though it received mixed reviews, it made enough of a splash, ensuring Netflix would stay a major blimp on the radar regarding original movies.
When Mark Wahlberg was reported to be starring in his own original movie on Netflix alongside Winston Duke and Post Malone, “Spenser Confidential” was a movie a lot of people had their eyes on. With the hype it had around it, “Spenser Confidential” was, at the very least, entertaining. With that being said, this movie isn’t going to win any awards.
Overall, the actors’ performances were fine. Winston Duke is the only standout performance in the movie — as all his performances are. Post Malone, for the two scenes he was in, provided a decent contribution, especially considering this was his first feature film performance.
As for the rest – Wahlberg at several points seems like he’s phoning it in. Iliza Schlesinger’s performance as a crazy dog lady is serviceable despite her fake Bostonian accent being over-the-top, and Alan Arkin is just playing Alan Arkin.
If there was one performance that truly hit its mark, it was Bokeem Woodbine’s performance as the main antagonist of the movie. However, mark wasn’t a good one. It didn’t seem like Woodbine was aware he was supposed to be this menacing overarching villain. His performance took away from the film’s story – which was something it couldn’t afford.
The storyline of the film was also predictable. The ending could be seen from the opening credits. The conflict is something that has been done a thousand times before and the plot twists are easily foreseeable. However, the film’s cinematography is entertaining.
This film will not be used in any MasterClass of film. However, it does provide entertainment in its use of Bayisms.
Bayisms are the use of filming techniques made popular by Michael Bay. Stuff blows up, the camera is shaky, there are a lot of crashes, a lot of random cuts and a lot of not knowing what’s going on in a fight scene. Even though this style of filmmaking has been panned, it’s entertaining, especially for a popcorn action flick.
Given many people are trapped in their homes with nothing else to do, a cheesy popcorn action flick might be just what people need. It’s something to just turn their brains off and watch instead of looking for a masterful film. If nothing else, “Spenser Confidential” can offer that.
“Spenser Confidential” gets a 5/10.
Teren Kowatsach can be reached at [email protected].