Retribution (English) Review {1.5/5} & Review Rating
RETRIBUTION is the story of a man trying to save his children from a mysterious criminal. Matt Turner (Liam Neeson) resides in Berlin, Germany with his wife Heather (Embeth Davidtz), son Zack (Jack Champion) and daughter Mila (Emily Kusche). He has a tumultuous relationship with his family. At work, he's a smooth talker and can get people to invest, even if they are losing money. One day, he is on his way to work and decides to drop Zack and Mila at school. Suddenly, he realizes that there's a phone in the car that doesn't belong to anyone from their family. He picks up the call and the mysterious caller informs him that there's a bomb under his seat. Matt, at first, doesn't take him seriously but he finds explosives under his seat. The caller makes it clear that if Matt gets up from his seat, the car will explode. He instructs him to keep driving as he says. He also informs Matt that he has the detonator and he can see him. Hence, he can kill Matt and their children if they try to act smart or call the cops. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
RETRIBUTION is a remake of the 2015 Spanish film EL DESCONOCIDO. The original film had far more meat, which Christopher Salmanpour's adapted story lacks. Christopher Salmanpour's screenplay is also not up to the mark. The dialogues are okay. In the absence of subtitles, some of the dialogues might be difficult to comprehend.
Nimród Antal's direction is not impressive. To give credit where it's due, the film is just 91 minutes long and doesn’t bore at all. A few scenes are nail-biting while technically, the film is top-class. On the flipside, after a great start, the film drops rapidly. The manner in which Matt is able to outsmart the villain by keeping his phone on mute is far-fetched. It’s also bewildering that the cops easily fall for the trap and conclude that Matt is the culprit. The suspense is unpredictable but is illogical and raises a lot of questions.
Speaking of performances, Liam Neeson is in his element and he tries his best to salvage the film. Jack Champion and Emily Kusche leave a huge mark. Embeth Davidtz is okay. Matthew Modine (Muller Anders) has a crucial part to play and is decent. Noma Dumezweni (Anegla) is passable.
Harry Gregson-Williams's music adds to the tension. Flavio Labiano's cinematography is very good. Most of the film is set in a car and yet, the cinematic value is intact. David Scheunemann's production design is appropriate. Mona May's costumes are realistic. Action is quite good. Steven Mirkovich's editing is sharp.
On the whole, RETRIBUTION is a flop show. At the box office, it’ll struggle due to poor word of mouth and immense competition.