The Equalizer - Movie Rant/Review

Movie spoiler alert on below content, read at your own risk.

This weekend we rented The Equalizer starring Denzel Washington. Whenever I see an upcoming movie that intrigues my interest I try very hard not to read any reviews or view any  additional trailers so when I finally do see the movie there is still an element of surprise.

Brief Summary
This movie is about Robert McCall, an unassuming man who works at the local Home Mart who finds himself somehow befriending a prostitute named Alina (played by Chloe Grace Mortez) at the diner he frequents. Alina, the victim of sex trafficking from a very young age dreams of a breaking free of her life and starting over. Alina's brief attempt at defying her Russian Mob bosses backfire and she is badly beaten to near death. Robert approaches the Russian Mob bosses and offers to buy Alina's freedom but his money is more-or-less thrown back in his face. Knowing that the Russians will continue to force Alina into prostitution Robert takes things into his own hands and kills the Mob bosses which essentially put a bounty on his head with the rest of the Russian Mafia. 

Review
The beginning of the movie was slow paced as it focused on the friendships between Robert and his co-workers at the Home Mart and his friendship with Alina who he knows from the local diner. I don't know if it is my home sound system but every scene in the diner when Alina (Chloe Grace Mortez) was speaking it seemed like she was mumbling and I could not clearly hear what she was saying without upping the volume multiple times. 

The scene where Robert kills the Mob bosses was the first scene where we really start to learn what kind of past Robert has had. It is clear that he has experience as a special ops assassin and it was awesome! I really liked how the director really slowed things down, showing us how Robert calculates his surroundings. 

Marton Csokas did an amazing job playing Teddy the hit man who is after Robert McCall. He really pulled off the "I'm so crazy, they don't even pay me, I just hunt and kill people for fun" vibe. The ending action scenes that took place at the Home Mart were so good! I was on the edge of my seat with anticipation knowing that we were at the point in the movie where Robert would finally have to go up against Teddy and I couldn't help but wonder if it could get any better. Guess what? It did get better! The scene where Robert walks out of the water in slow motion towards Teddy was totally epic! 

I've seen reviews saying this movie was too violent but I did not find that to be the case at all. Now, if the majority of the movies you tend to watch are movies like "The Fault in Our Stars" then yes, this movie might come across as too violent for you. But if you're like me, who watches movies like "The Raid 1 & 2" then I would consider this movie mildly violent. 

Robert McCall is going on the list of my favorite fictional hit man/assassin. He's right up there with Leon Montana (film The Professional). 

Overall I really enjoyed this movie and I am planning on purchasing it to add to my collection of action movies. I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars and highly recommend that you check it out.

Questions I'm Left to Ponder 

1. Roberts friend Ralph who works with him at Home Mart is concerned that he won't be able to cut-it when it comes to the security guard test. How intense is this security guard test? It's Home Mart not a bank...
2. Will Ralph continue with his new security guard career? Lets face it, his first week as a security guard the store was robbed under his watch, the Russian Mob infiltrated the store and not only did he get shot, he found out his friend was a closet badass... Those are the types of things that make you think twice. 
3. Can you really boil honey and use it to cauterize a wound? Is it weird that I made a mental note to try this if I'm ever in a position with no other options?