“2 Guns” centres around an unlikely alliance between Naval Intelligence Officer Marcus Stigman (Mark Wahlberg) and D.E.A. agent Bobby Trench (Denzel Washington) after an undercover operation against a Mexican drug Cartel goes horribly wrong. Little do the pair know they each work for rival bureaus—that is until they rob a large sum of money from a Cartel-owned bank and Stigman double crosses Trench.
However this is merely the tip of the iceberg in the corrupt, dog-eat-dog world of “2 Guns.” It turns out the bank they rob is being used by the Cartel, who are also in cahoots with the CIA. In steps Earl (Bill Paxton) the quick witted, comical, but massively corrupt, CIA operative to clean up the mess and get the money back. When the pair are framed by their respective agencies, Trench and Stigman must team up for their survival. Surrounded by enemies on both sides of the law, they form an unlikely alliance and seek to clear their names as a complicated and violent sequence of events unfold.
There is a lot to like about this movie. The Washington-Wahlberg interplay works incredibly well and the pair have a number of quick witted and funny exchanges. It’s clear their respective characters couldn’t be any less alike and the differences allow them to bounce off of one another in an entertaining and enjoyable way. They bring an appeal to their roles that makes the audience enjoy watching them on-screen, which is both down to the actors themselves and the writing. Likewise Bill Paxton brings his own talents to the role of Earl, who immerses himself in violence to get what he wants. He portrays the character with edge and intelligence, and it would almost be funny if it wasn’t for the fact he’s clearly a sociopath.
The morally ambiguous tone of the story is set early on when members of the Cartel are torturing chickens for sport. Stigwell puts the animals out of their misery by blowing their heads off in quick succession. We do unfortunately see this happen, and the character protests the animal cruelty, but at the same time he is eating a plate of chicken. This dark sense of irony is prevalent throughout the story, which is also spattered with dark humour.
The device is used to highlight a number of issues and ideas surrounding race, immigration, and morality. The problem is the ideas are brought up within the context of the story but they aren’t explored in any depth or commented on that much. They simply exist and are presented to us to do with them whatever we will. Likewise the story by Blake Masters is a little confusing from time to time. For the first half of the film we’re never really sure if Stigwell and Trench are the good guys, the bad guys, or somewhere in-between. The result is a mishmash of government agents and gang members all vying for the money in an overlapping series of confusing events.
Bill Paxton plays a comedically-inclined sociopath throughout. Photo: Universal Pictures, 2013.
Thankfully as the movie progresses we do reach some perspective on who’s who and what’s going on; albeit with a scarcity of character background and very little in the way of exposition. It would have been nice to have a little more character background and information as it would have helped with the overall storytelling. A number of side characters are introduced in quick succession, and we’re not really sure where each character stands in relation to each other within the plot. Not only this—we aren’t given a clearer understanding of character motives or what make them tick; everyone seems to be out for themselves and just to get their hands on the money. “2 Guns” is a morally corrupt world with a lot of grey areas.
Despite all of this, there is a certain amount of uniqueness to the movie that draws you in. The audience wants to know what’s going to happen next with the two lead characters and if they’re going to get themselves out of their slippery situation. The unfolding of events is very complicated; and the story does get pulled back and forth quite a lot, but eventually it all makes sense and is worth the wait. Also, while not all of the dark humour lands, overall the movie is quite funny. There isn’t as much action compared to other films within the genre, however what action there is, is well-timed and well-executed.
If you’re looking for an intense, thought-provoking, piece of drama, “2 Guns” just isn’t for you. However it does have the feel of a great Friday night movie to enjoy with others, and has a very satisfactory ending you’ll be sure to enjoy.
