Plot: What’s it about?
I enjoy Chris Pine as an actor enough, but something about The Contractor just didn’t seem that appealing to me. The film had abysmal box office returns, but these days you really can’t hold that against many films since covid changed things and many know the window from theatrical to streaming is narrow. That, and I saw next to nothing when it came to advertisements for this film. It still might have just enough to please fans of this sort of film even if one viewing should be more than adequate.
After he is involuntarily discharged, US Special Forces James Harper (Chris Pine) takes on a job with an old friend. James loses his medical care and is dismissed because of the use of banned drugs to cope with his injuries. Ben Foster plays his old friend, Mike Denton. After the first assignment leaves James as essentially a man on the run. There is indeed a lot of action in the film, but the repetition runs high after a while. There’s gun fire and fights, but I started to tune out after a point.
Another review mentioned how the film is good at building momentum, and I would have to agree. The first half of Contractor really had me with it. I was engaged and liked following one man’s struggle and was anxious to see where the film would take this character. That was even with the knowledge that it would likely follow a familiar path. I am more than ok with that as it is often the execution of a film rather than what it is about. Somewhere along the way, however, the film just lost me. It has echoes of the Jason Bourne films.
Video: How’s it look?
Most films today are going to look good. Let’s just be real for a second. So expect my usual remarks about how the colors and the print are on point. Not to sound passive, but this portion of the review still must be done. To my eyes I have no issues here. The 2.35:1 transfer presented the film in a pleasant manner.
Audio: How’s it sound?
How does it sound? LOUD! Let it be known that this track has a lot of guns and explosions. Those scenes work almost too well. It’s the dialogue that could’ve used a bit more clarity. It just wasn’t as sharp as I would have liked. Still, it did well enough.
Supplements: What are the extras?
Nothing to be found. Not even a trailer.
The Bottom Line
The Contractor had me in the first half. Unfortunately, it becomes repetitive in the later half. It never turns into a bad film, and it just may please fans of this genre enough for a rental, but all others should probably play it safe and skip it.
