Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is formidable in Netflix’s take on the thriller novel Denzel Washington turned into a noughties action movie. But it’s a great lesson in why shows don’t normally have a glum high-octane hero
Who doesn’t love a thriller in which a lone wolf takes down an all-powerful criminal network? Jack Reacher, Ethan Hunt, whatsisname from The Night Agent – however adverse the circumstances, these capable chaps will prevail. Hand-to-hand combat against a highly trained ninja henchman? No problem. Breaking into a phenomenally secure facility, stealing the valuable thing, then striding out again? Easy. Defeating a warehouse full of men with Kalashnikovs, armed only with sunglasses and string, all while rescuing a screaming female civilian? All in a day’s work.
These yarns are healthy, silly fun and we enjoy them. But, Netflix’s new six-parter Man on Fire asks, what if we kept the core idea but made it less silly and fun, more sad and serious? Wouldn’t that be even better? Well, it seems it wouldn’t be a complete disaster, but in this case it makes life more difficult for everyone, the viewer included.
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Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is formidable in Netflix’s take on the thriller novel Denzel Washington turned into a noughties action movie. But it’s a great lesson in why shows don’t normally have a glum high-octane heroWho d...
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