“The Equalizer” (Action/Crime/Thriller: 2 hours, 11 minutes)

Starring: Denzel Washington, Marton Csokas, Chloë Grace Moretz, Johnny Skourtis and Melissa Leo          

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Rated: R (Profanity, strong violence and some sexual references)

Movie Review: Washington and Fuqua make a dynamic team. They paired to create 2001’s “Training Day,” which was a dynamic film.

They are back together for “The Equalizer,” an adaptation of the television series “The Equalizer” (1985–1989). The series starred Edward Woodward as a retired intelligence agent turned private detective.

Washington plays the part that originated with Woodward superbly. Washington and Fuqua are in fine form still. They both dazzle in this energetic crime thriller.

Robert McCall (Washington) is a retired government agent living a quiet life working at home-improvement store. He is a meticulous and peculiar man. He is also helpful to those around him, helping others make their lives better and healthier.

McCall believes his mysterious past is behind him.  Enter Teri (Moretz), a young prostitute working for brutal Russian gangsters, who McCall befriends. Teri has a problem, the odds are stacked against her, and she has nowhere else to turn. McCall comes out of his self-imposed retirement to help her.

He is The Equalizer.

Washington is one “bad man.” He is a one-man killing machine in this role. Washington plays a role that shows little emotions. These are the toughest roles to play because an actor portrays much with little emotional span. Good actors make this work in a convincing manner. Washington is that talented actor. He is superior. He makes McCall realistic and engaging, despite his character’s repetitive moments.

Washington’s scenes with Moretz and Latino actor Johnny Skourtis are phenomenal moments. Each scene adds more to Washington’s McCall. Moretz and Skourtis work because they actually appear to need help. They appear tangible characters, too. Even more, they appear to need help.

Antoine Fuqua and writer Richard Wenk piece together a solid movie plot that works as good entertainment. The ending is foreseeable, but the trip there is enjoyable and riveting.

The action is non-stop energy. For numerous minutes, audiences see Washington’s McCall taking out bad guys with construction tools — he barely uses guns. His is clever. Screenplays rarely show protagonists using everyday objects to take out foes. This is done brilliantly in “The Equalizer,” a worthy action film for those wanting entertainment at its best.

The staple of this flick remains Washington. He proves he is a pivotal actor. He is flawless and believable as a one-man-killing machine.

Grade: B (It equalizes what would be a dull movie season.)

 

“The Boxtrolls” (Animation/Adventure/Comedy: 1 hour, 36 minutes)

Starring: Ben Kingsley, Jared Harris, Elle Fanning, and Isaac Hempstead Wright          

Directors: Graham Annable, Anthony Stacchi

Rated: PG (Violence, some perilous action and mild rude humor)

Movie Review: An adaptation of the children’s novel “Here Be Monsters” by Alan Snow, “The Boxtrolls” is about a community of underground-dwelling trolls who have raised Eggs (voiced by Wright of “Game of Thrones”), an orphaned boy.

Underneath the city of Cheesebridge, Eggs and the Boxtrolls have lived a peaceful life, but they are constantly on the run from villain exterminator Archibald Snatcher (the voice of Kingsley), a man promised a seat on the city’s council if he could capture the Boxtrolls terrorizing the people.

Conversely, Boxtrolls are benign creatures.

After Snatcher captures most of the Boxtrolls, Eggs, accompanied by his new friend, Winnie (nicely voiced by Fanning), must come to the Boxtrolls rescue.

A neat brilliant aspect exists with this film. The main villain also has an alternate persona used to facilitate a plot to seize power and fame. The alternate persona’s main function is to advance the deception. Children may not catch this cleverness, but it is brilliant storytelling.

Part of that great story telling is a great song and dance routine by a character known as Madame Frou Frou that articulates why people fear the Boxtrolls. The catchy song is a nice way of telling part of the town’s history without bogging down the story.

Grand visuals grace this stop-motion animation, accompanying the unique story. Vivid colors and grand set designs are present in a manner tantalizing to the eye. That should make all interesting for children. However, parents should note that some material may be a bit much for very small kids.

Add unique characters, and audiences of all ages should find something to like with this engaging tale. Solid characters make this film fun. These onscreen beings have plenty of energy, and they are voiced superbly by talented actors. Kingsley and Wright are especially engrossing.  

Again, this animated production’s best is a creative story that is superior in many forms. A certain superior intellect adorns scenes. Scary trolls are really endearing creatures who roam the streets at night, looking for objects to create machines. It is the humans who are scary. Simultaneously, “Boxtrolls” takes that aspect of a story and provides plenty of mental floss and entertainment.

Grade: B (Good, out-of-the-box entertainment.)