‘Peppermint’ Review: Jennifer Garner’s ‘Death Wish’ is cliched, but entertaining for some
Vengeance film are dumb and incredibly unbelievable.
If you can get past that, then they can also be entertaining. From Death Wish to Taken to nearly ever Steven Seagal film ever made, the genre is ripe with action, funny lines and cliches. Peppermint is the latest addition, showcasing moves by Jennifer Garner.
Garner (Alias) plays Riley North, a woman who witnesses and survives the murder of her husband and daughter by an MS-13 inspired Hispanic gang. Despite identifying the shooters, a corrupt judge allows the criminals to walk and Riley takes justice in her own hands.
The film, directed by Pierre Morel (The Gunman, Overdrive), tries to add a nugget of believability to the plot by having Riley steal a bag of cast and disappear for five years, learning MMA and military grade weaponry. Morel directed Taken, but this is NOT Taken. Don’t expect that or you will be HIGHLY disappointed.
Peppermint is falls flat by not having enough humor or the flawed heroism characteristics from Die Hard or Indiana Jones films. The other characters are just cardboard cliches filling a role: drug lord, drunk cop, honest cop, innocent kids…it’s all there.
Garner’s Riley is not interesting in her skills, like the swagger of a Liam Neeson character, but she is good enough.
What the critics get wrong is the attack on the film from a political standpoint. This is from Variety:
films of this ilk have long been dogged by a reactionary, if not borderline fascistic, approach to matters of race, and “Peppermint” makes a ham-fisted go at splitting the difference by casting actors of color in the supporting good guy roles, while also playing to Fox News’ swampiest MS-13 fever dreams in its depiction of Garcia’s gang. (It makes no attempt, however, to dodge the white savior tropes that are also endemic to vigilante pics, with one laugh-out-loud shot in particular pushing things well beyond the point of parody.)
These are the same critics who hated Death Wish as a pro-gun film and fueling vigilantism.
It’s all nonsense.
MS-13 is a real thing. A real threat to California and border states where the film is set. As I stated, Peppermint is a cliched action flick, but is also fun and reasonably entertaining. My hope is that there is a sequel and Riley takes down a gang of white meth heads dealing in a black neighborhood. Let’s see how the critics like that.
Peppermint gets 2 stars out of 5 stars
As mentioned, if Death Wish is your thing, then check this out. If you love old-80’s cop and ‘Shoot ‘Em Up’ films, then you will also like this film. If you are a self-proclaimed social justice warrior, then I don’t know why you are even considering watching this film…it’s a byproduct of the fantasies from a society built on toxic masculinity and racism, exploiting white culture’s dominance and hatred of Hispanics under the current President.
