Spenser Confidential

There is a rule in Hollywood, that we have seen in many years. Release the films that we don´t have high expectations of in the month of January, and we will see if anyone wants to see the film. There are a lot of examples of films that have been released exactly this month, such as horror action film known as I, Frankenstein, released in 2014 ( with Aaron Eckhart ). Or how about Vice in 2015 ( with actors such as Bruce Willis and Thomas Jane ) ? These are just two good examples of releases that people had no high expectations of in Janurary. I actually find it fun every year with the releases of this month, and there are actually a few films that have turned out to be better than expected. Especially one film in January of 2013, when director Peter Berg released his military action film Lone Survivor. This film turned out to be a box office success, pulling in over 154 million dollars, on a budget of 40 million dollars. Not bad for a January release. Lone Survivor is based on the eponymous 2007 non-fiction book by authors Marcus Luttrel and Patrick Robinson, that tells the story of what happened to Seal Team 10 in Afghanistan, in the summer of 2005. This was actually the first film where director Peter Berg and actor Mark Wahlberg worked together, and it turned out to be a great match. Lone Survivor manage to deliver a solid story, and some great acting performances as well. If you have not seen this film for any reason, you should check it out. Director Peter Berg continued making films together, such as Deepwater Horizon and Patriots Day. Both of these films are really good, and worth checking out You could tell that actor Mark Wahlberg could deliver great characters with the help of director Peter Berg, and i had high hopes for their next film Mile 22. That film turned out to be their worst film, that they have worked on together. Too bad, but i suppose it is hard to make everything right. When i heard the news that director Peter Berg would team up again with Mark Wahlberg in the Netflix film Spenser Confidential, i was happy. Could they finally be back on track again with something good this time ? Is this the best team work from both os these men since Patriots Day, or is Spenser Confidential not worth checking out at all ?

Detective Spenser ( Mark Wahlberg ) arrives with his partner Driscol ( Bokeem Woodbine ) to the home of Captain John Boylan ( Michael Gaston ). While questioning about the woman named Gloria Wiesnewski ( Alexandra Vino ), and the tape footage of Wiesnewski´s murder leaked by Wayne Cosgrove ( Marc Maron ), the confrontation gets heated after Spenser sees Mrs Boylan´s bloody face, and beats Captain John sensleess. Spenser is sent to prison for 5 years. After serving his time, Spenser is released and picked up by his friend Henry Cimoli ( Alan Arkin ). At night, Captain John is driving talking to his daughter over the phone. An S U V drives right into him at a school bus yard, drag him out and kill him. The next morning, a nurse named Letitia Graham ( Hope Olaide Wilson ) comes home to find her husband Terrence Graham ( Brandon Scales ) dead. Spenser is considered to be a suspect, while he knows he had nothing to do with these murders. But when Spenser begin to do his own investogation of what happened, he is about to find out another truth that was supposed to stay hidden.

I could be wrong about this, but i get a sense that director Peter Berg could have been inspired by the 1982 classic film 48 Hours. Not that these films have in lot in common, but the concept of of Spenser Confidental reminds me of the teamwork that Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy had in 48 Hours. Because this film actually manage to deliver both good comedy timing, and great looking action scenes as well. If you have seen the previous films that Mark Wahlberg and director Peter Berg have made together before, i have to say that Spenser Confidential stands out from their catalogue. This is a much more simple film, that is made for fans of action films such as Lethal Weapon. Speaking of Mark Wahlberg, i don´t need to tell you in detail why he is good as the main character Spenser. He knows how to deliver a great character, especially in action films. One of the biggest susprises for me personally, is how good actor Winston Duke is as the character Hawk is. Imagine a combination of Mr T, and the friendly John Coffey in The Green Mile, and you have Hawk. He may seem like a soft guy, but once he gets his mood in the right place, we get that violent behavior that we all were hoping for. Comedian actress Iliza Schlesinger plays the rough, bad ass character Cissy Davis. And she is so good, that she may be one of the highlights in this film. Legendary actor Alan Arkin as Henry proves once more why he is so natural on screen, and how he manage to bring out characters in his own unique way. If you are looking for an intelligent film, with a lot of depth and intelligent conversations, then you are not going to find it here with Spenser Confidential. This is a film made for fans of action films, who just want to be entertained with fun characters, and great looking action scenes. Director Peter Berg have definetely stepped it up in the right direction since Mile 22, and i am happy to see him back on track. I am looking forward to see these guys work together again, perhaps even see a sequel to this film ? I guess we will have to wait and see. Spenser Confidential is a good choice on Netflix, that will entertain all ages.

Rating: DDD