The Equalizer 3 (Mini-Review)

The Equalizer 3 is the third and final movie in the film series based on the television show. Robert McCall finds himself stuck in Italy after one of his personal missions goes wrong. The bright side is that he quickly finds the little town he found himself in feels like home. A feeling he had never truly known. So when that peace is threatened, there is no lengths he will not go to in order to protect the people that now feel like family to him. The Equalizer 3 came out in 2023. It was directed by Antoine Fuqua. It stars Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning, and David Denman.

There are no mid or post credits scenes.

I kept my expectations for this movie low. It is, after all, the third movie in a series whose second installment was meh. Yet I was still prepared for a good, bloody justice filled time. The trailers really helped sell me on seeing this movie. Denzel Washington calm even though he is surrounded.

Throughout the entire movie I kept trying to figure out who played Emma Collins-Plummer. I went through numerous actresses trying to match the face and voice. Finally, eyes glued to the credits, I saw she was played by Dakota Fanning. After looking up the IMDB trivia page for this movie, which is really short, I saw she had been in another movie with Denzel Washington. So it's a little funny that he again is playing a character that is protecting her. Though in this movie his protection is a little more subtle.

There are a few kills in the movie that are especially gruesome. The first is near the beginning when Robert McCall shoots a man and he crawls away. While crawling away he shoots the man in the butt but doesn't kill the man. At another point he uses a man as both a human shield and a way to get the final shot. Finally, Robert kills a major antagonist in a way that isn't bloody but is still a gruesome end.

Besides Robert finding a home and protecting his newfound family, there is a mystery at the heart of the movie. While making his attack in the beginning of the movie, he finds there is a drug trade going on. The mystery comes in the fact that where the drugs are doesn't make sense. So there has to be something else going on. This plot is manned by Emma and helped along by Robert. Hence the two characters meet and form a friendship.

I would recommend The Equalizer 3 to fans of the movies. I would also recommend The Equalizer 3 to those looking for an enjoyable action movie.