Nobody

 This review may contain spoilers!

 

Nobody follows a former hitman, who has regressed into a 'normal' working man style of life, steadily awaken to his old violent tendencies after a break-in at his family home. Our protagonist, Hutch, manages to get on the wrong side of the Russian mob, leading to a wild firefight raged across the city. The big thing going into this film for me was the fact that both Nobody and John Wick shared the same roots in their writer, it became impossible not to wonder if this would feel like watching an action feature similar to the one already told. But I was really impressed by the narrative of Nobody, it worked to generate a character who in a lot of ways felt more fleshed out than John Wick did. Hutch Mansell feels like a very mundane person when first you meet him, he seems weak-willed and almost deeply withdrawn. The film pushes him into a scenario that places him and his family in danger and he doesn't outwardly appear to be confrontational in the moment. Yet after this point there seems to be something new in Hutch, a rage bubbling below the surface and another aspect of himself desperate to be let out; ultimately seeing him get his revenge on the burglars and then putting a stop to a crime before it happens later. The ensuing vendetta between himself and the Russian mob that spirals out of his actions is really fascinating to watch as he is forced to strip back layer after layer of this everyday person he is pretending to be. The film takes a very careful and deliberate approach to revealing how much of himself Hutch has repressed and just how much he is willing to let out in order to save himself and his family. This is a character worth watching, one who is really explored in depth and who you will never stop rooting for all the way up to the credits. There's a really strong use of wit and levity in this film that heightens how fun this is to watch, Hutch is a much lighter figure than Wick and so inadvertently places himself in more comedic scenarios. The cinematography looks absolutely excellent, having a unique visual language with some amazing tracking shots during those high stakes action sequences. The editing sets a creative visual pace and I loved the unique spin on transitioning through a week and telling a character's story through precise cuts rather than just through exposition. The score for the film is masterful and keeps the pulse pounding, while the soundtrack used features some absolute classics that are hilarious in their delivery.

 

Christopher Lloyd, who played David Mansell, might certainly look and sound older but he is still a masterclass performer; Lloyd leans in to what seems a very geriatric character to then contrast this with a very gleeful and capable approach to violence. Colin Salmon, who played The Barber, was a perfect means of subtly conveying the larger more intricate world Hutch Mansell came from; Salmon delivers exposition coolly and with an elegance that added a layer of mystery to his intriguing role. Paisley Cadorath, who played Abby Mansell, is a really charming young performer; the onscreen chemistry between Odenkirk and Cadorath marks them as a perfect father/daughter pairing.

However, the best performance came from Bob Odenkirk, who played Hutch Mansell. I'm a big fan of Odenkirk, he makes the transition from highly witty roles to starker dramatic ones seamlessly; a trait that is capitalised upon in Nobody. When we start with Odenkirk's Hutch, he seems downtrodden, unable to quite make everything in his life come together and work for him. Hutch is a man who wants to do well but isn't really respected, he is easy to percieve as being weak due to how mild an individual he is. But Oden kirk really subtly shows some cues that Hutch is a lot more quick-thinking and capable than out ward appearnces would have us believe. The bond and love he has for his family are such a nice overarching motivator that when he feels his daughter has been wronged, it is the moment that unleashes the rage within him. Odenkirk leans into his role's past by making him this more cold, calculating individual when upon the streets. He walks around with so much fury and desire to mete out justice in a manner he used to that this leads to a very gruelling scene of punishment and violence. What works for this character is watching him strip apart this ordinary family man persona and bring forth the hitman he used to be, the blend between both is the ultimate goal and Oden kirk finds this really easily. Hutch Mansell is a man with a vendetta who is easy to like and relate to, he is an individual that is impressive like John Wick but more than that he feels like a character with heart and wit in spades.

Nobody is thus far the standout action feature of the year for me but it certainly did take some time to connect with. Too often I found Nobody treated Hutch's ordinary life as a gag, the story would get quite over the top to note how down on his luck and ordinary he was perceived as. When the film ended with him and his wife having a generic open home visit and he was back to being quite mild before going stark serious again I felt the film itself was showing how steep a contrast it often set. I also thought the motivations behind why Hutch decided to retire from being a hitman could've been explored in greater detail or in a more convincing way; slapping it on as exposition delivered to dead bodies felt somewhat rushed and unnecessary.

Aleksey Serebryakov, who played Yulian Kuznetsov, wasn't the most original take on a Russian protagonist; the decadent rich crime boss with wild tendencies to violence is pretty played out. Connie Nielsen, who played Becca Mansell, is extremely stoic in what is quite a bland role; Nielsen plays to the distance between herself and Odenkirk but fails to actually develop that into anything more as the film goes along which is rather disappointing. Michael Ironside and Billy MacLellan, who played Eddie Williams and Charlie Williams respectively, don't seem as present as obstacles for Hutch like they should be; Ironside quietly makes himself known in scenes while MacLellan really blusters himself up without delivering the intent behind the lines. RZA, who played Harry Mansell, is quite an underwhelming role in the feature; the movie spends a lot of time building him up only for RZA to really have little to no chemistry as siblings with Odenkirk. Araya Mengesha, who played Pavel, was a strange henchman role who served as a punchline around his nationality; it was a strange choice to include Pavel at all more than anything. Gage Munroe, who played Blake Mansell, is very stereotypical as the sullen teenager with issues towards his father; Munroe never found a moment of genuine emotion or connection with his fellow castmates which let the family dynamic down.

A combination of really engaging action-thriller alongside a really committed performance by Bob Odenkirk marks this as an action feature worthy of John Wick levels of acclaim. I would give Nobody an 8.5/10.