Equalizer 3 * * * *

I read somewhere that this is likely to be the last in the Equalizer Franchise. If that is the case, its certainly going out on a high note. 

Equalizer 3 starts off in Sicily.  Robert McCall is a retired CIA operative, but he can't seem to knock off.  The reason why he is there is a bit vague at first, but one thing is certain, other people, bad people, don't want him there.  So with a meat cleaver, pistols, shotguns and knives he kills all of them - and their boss. He'd have walked off unharmed except for a weird twist of fate.  

Badly wounded he goes back to the mainland where he is rescued by a local cop who takes him the village doctor.  The doctor takes him in and attends to him and cares for him through recuperation.  Over the next few months Robert becomes good friends with the doctor and many other people too in this idyllic Amalfi Coast village. 

"On ya Bike", says Robert.

But Robert McCall doesn't like the local Bikies that's for sure!  And neither do we when we see what they get up to.  Part of the Camorra, they bully, exploit and generally act in a reprehensible manner bringing terror to the village. Meanwhile Robert McCall has been getting better each day and now he doesn't even need his walking stick anymore. Go Sic 'em Rob!  And he does!

Robert McCall has an interesting way of disposing of the enemy.  Unlike John Wick he doesn't do punch-ups or karate kicks.  But he can still hurt them very, very badly.  He is methodical, quietly torturing and stabbing and throat slitting.  Mind you, after watching what these thugs on motorbikes have done to the locals you can only cheer him on.  

As a backstory, Robert has contacted the CIA and told them about what we witnessed in the opening scene.  That there is a pseudo winery in Sicily that is also a drug cartel.  So some young woman of extraordinary authority for a young woman, comes to Italy with her CIA colleagues to sort it out. I don't know why the Italians can't do it themselves, but there you go.

Although gruesome to the point where it is bordering on splatter, E3 is a fun film: tight, exciting ,with some humor, both dark and light, a bit of religious symbolism  and a hint of romance.  Robert McCall is an imposing lead character superbly played by Denzel Washington.  As a bonus there is the excellent cinematography of a breathtaking location.