Today’s quick review: Polar. With just two weeks left until retirement and a $8 million pension, professional assassin Duncan Vizla (Mads Mikkelsen) settles down in a small Montana town, where he establishes a quiet life for himself and befriends Camille (Vanessa Hudgens), his shy neighbor. But his new life erupts into violence when his deranged boss Mr. Blut (Matt Lucas) sends a team of assassins to kill Duncan before he can collect on his pension.
Polar is a violent action movie about an aging hitman and the trials that stand between him and a peaceful retirement. Polar features stylized presentation, gory action, and the story of a man trying to put his past behind him. However, its execution leaves something to be desired. Clownish villains, writing that’s merely adequate, and depravity that’s more off-putting than artistic combine to make Polar a mixed success at best.
Polar is at its best when Duncan gets to put his skills to use. The character’s decades of experience, coupled with Mads Mikkelsen’s stony performance, give Duncan some excellent moments throughout the film as he gets one over on his attackers. These moments are where Polar seems to hit its stride, where the adrenaline starts flowing, the twists hit their mark, and the movie shows worthwhile creativity. Duncan in action works just fine.
The problem is the scaffolding for Duncan’s action scenes. The movie spends most of its time with either Duncan in civilian life or the assassins in their search for Duncan. Neither of these threads ends up being very compelling. Duncan’s struggles to adapt to retirement are slow-paced and only occasionally amusing, while the exploits of Mr. Blut and his sadistic killers are meant to be darkly comedic but instead come across as grisly.
The result is a hit-or-miss action flick that wallows in the seamier aspects of the genre. Fans of schlocky, violent action will find what they’re looking for, but those hoping for artistic violence or feel-good escapism will be disappointed. For a more stylish action movie about a retired hitman, try John Wick. For a similarly gory budget action movie, try Everly. For stylized violence with more artistry behind it, try Sin City or Kill Bill.
6.3 out of 10 on IMDB. I give it a 6.0 to 6.5 for a solid lead and some decent action hurt by its excesses.