War on Everyone ****
Casual disregard at the extraordinary is the name of the game of writer-director John Michael McDonagh‘s black, black 70s-themed cop thriller comedy, War on Everyone, starring unlikely pairing, Alexander Skarsgård and Michael Peña as corrupt coppers in crime.
It’s Tarantino-esque twitterings between its leads while chaos ensues feels less than fresh. However, as much as Peña has earned his stripes playing hispanic cop roles on screen (take Mike in End of Watch), it’s seeing him bounce off man-tower Skarsgård’s loser character Terry in this that’s fascinating to watch.
Set in New Mexico, to cops, Terry and Bob (Peña) set out to blackmail and frame every criminal they encounter – police pensions (as we are always told) never really pay. Things get sinister as they try to fry a bigger fish. But just who should be afraid of who?
McDonagh’s film is ode to the 70s cop thriller era, with a broody and strikingly handsome Skarsgård – even when mashed up – evoking this decade’s style in full spirit. He also has the muscle car that refuses to ‘die’, just like a trusty petrol steed. Peña is the family-man cop again, but also the brains behind the operation – a slight twist to his usual police character. The thrill is not just the excellent and free-flowing rapport the pair has, but also being kept on tender hooks as to when the pair’s luck will finally run out.
The blatant ‘F* You’ sentiment is beautifully balanced throughout with the smaller things in life that are important. It’s like there is a damaged moral compass still guiding both, even when they are doing something wrong. Keeps us on their side throughout. However, this is no ‘New Mexico Robin Hood’ tale – this pair are robbing for their own gain. Things change though, when some of the ‘victims’ them encounter along the way change their perception for the better. The very end scene is really unexpected from where the film first starts. This is what is oddly ‘different’ about it compared with the usual damaged cop affair. There is a justice of sorts that wins our favour.
War on Everyone beats with the blackest of hearts, with good and irony born out of evil. The buddy journey with Skarsgård and Peña is an incredibly satisfying one too.
4/5 stars
By @FilmGazer
