Nobody

       

     A new action thriller that is incredibly violent and stars against type, the always excellent Bob Odenkirk. We've seen this before, one hero takes on, in this case, the Russian mob but not quite in this context.

      There are many surprising moments right from the opening scene as well as subtle sight gags and dialog. Mr. Odenkirk is perfectly cast as Hutch Mansell, a "nobody" family man but of course, harboring a secret past. While unusual to see him as an action hero, he is up to the task. Credit the writer, Derek Kolstad and director, Ilya Naishuller, to pull no punches showing off his skills but yet also showing his vulnerability. As they say, he "takes a licking but keeps on ticking".

       The film co-stars Connie Nielsen as Hutch's wife, Christopher Lloyd as his dad, and RZA as his half-brother. Aleksei Serebryakov plays a very scary Russian crime boss. Bullet's fly, things blow up, and there are multiple fight scenes that don't hold back on the bloodshed, but many of these scenes are shot in new and novel ways. It's very over the top yet offers, what passes for, a reasonable explanation for Mr. Odenkirk's call to action.

         The ending sets up the possibility of a sequel and there is a clever mid-credit extra scene. If you are a fan of this genre, you will probably enjoy this film quite a bit. If not, skip it and you've missed nothing. Or should I say, Nobody.