MARAUDERS

US, 2016, 107 minutes, Colour.
Christopher Meloni, Bruce Willis, Dave Bautista, Adrian Grenier, Johnathon Schaech Lydia Hull.
Directed by Stephen C.Miller.

This is one of the many crime thrillers that Bruce Willis made year by year as he grew older. However, he is not the main star of this film – and, in fact, he is a billionaire villain. The hero, a somewhat jaded detective with harsh past experiences, is played by Christopher Meloni.

The initial focus of this drama is on bank robberies, the villains wearing skeletal masks, somewhat unscrupulous in their killing of security guards, a man in the street… The detective pursues his investigations with quite some intensity, critical of some of his associates, especially one who seems to have betrayed him in the past (Johnathan Schaech) and is now very much concerned about his terminally ill wife. And, he has been assigned a new man to be his immediate associate. He is played by Adrian Grenier.

There are some twists in the plot, more revelation about the Bruce Willis character, another side of the detective’s assistant, a trip to Mexico and some vigilante justice.

In many ways routine, generally keeping the attention, though with some touches of brutality.

1. Bank robbery movie? Twist? Conspiracy?

2. The Cincinnati settings, the town, FBI headquarters, police, the banks, the streets, drug areas? The transition to Mexico at the end? The musical score?

3. The opening, the robberies, split second timing, military precision, the skull masks? Speaking, the recordings, the viciousness of the shooting of the manager? The next robbery? The shooting of the security guard? The murder of the man in the street?

4. The introduction to Montgomery, intense close-up, slow motion? His authority? His team? Well is being appointed to his team? Relying on him? His anger about the evidence, Mims taking it, the confrontation with Mims? The background, the torture and death of his wife, Mims and his giving information? The other agents?

5. The details of his work, interrogations, evidence, speculation, the visit to Huber? Wells and his advice? Or suspicions on Huber? The story of the death of his brother, squad going in, they’re being attacked and killed? TJ and his escape, not making himself known to his wife and child? His brother and the drug deals?

6. Interviews with TJ, the visit to the club, his wife singing? The interrogation by Montgomery?

7. Mims, the background, his wife with the cancer, his devotion to her, her support of him, his wanting to escape, his comments about the man that he had become, betrayals?

8. The character of Huber, his arrogance at the bank, the spider climbing up the wall, his wanting to go to the top, or that there was no top? Arrogance? The growing complexity of the raid on his brother? His participation? The news of the robberies? The helicopter, his escape to Mexico?

9. The details of the investigation, the discovery of the truth about Wells? His participation in the raid? Revenge against Huber? Going to Mexico, Montgomery trusting Wells? The confrontation of Huber, stabbing him, death? Will supporting him?