A resurrection gone wrong

Despite Jason Statham's star value and some thrilling action scenes, Mechanic:Resurrection is a sequel that should never have been attempted

In 2011, director Simon West had decided to remake the 1972 film, The Mechanic. The remake starred Jason Statham in the titular role of the "mechanic", a slang for an assassin or hitman popularised by the mafia. The film had Arthur Bishop (Statham) specialising in making his hits look like accidents. The film wasn't quite popular, mediocre at best. So, it is a bit difficult to understand why Mechanic:Resurrection was conceived five years later.

Nevertheless, Statham is enough to pull crowds to movie theatres. That is because, Statham - in most of his films - has made watching a film with a weak plot enjoyable solely with the persona he exudes. He's tough, mean and has an air of intelligence about him, which puts him above the other mindless "action heroes".

The newest installment, this time directed by Dennis Gansel, also stars Jessica Alba, Michelle Yeoh and Tommy Lee Jones. The film is set after the events of its predecessor. In the 2011 film, Bishop escapes an explosion - Jason Bourne style - which was supposed to kill him. In Resurrection, we find Bishop living in Rio (maybe he wanted to watch the Olympics; assassins are humans too) under a new name. Like other hitmen in other films, Bishop, too, thinks he has left his killing days behind. He has found love in Gina (Alba) and wants to spend the remainder of his life sipping caipirinhas. But since the film's title says it all, we know that's not going to be the case. Gina gets abducted, and to get her back, Bishop has to assassinate three targets and make them look like accidents.

What follows are action sequences that all Statham fans would love. There's a particular sequence that reminds you of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol. Only this time, Statham looks much cooler than Tom Cruise. He looks as if he climbs up towers with suction cups just for fun.

Bishop puts Agent 47 to shame as he makes "accidents" happen effortlessly. He carries out two of three kills with ease. Then, Jones shows up. With his arrival, you feel as if the film has just started. His character is well-defined, much better than Alba's, but sadly he gets too little screen time. Just like Alba, Jones was perhaps cast to make the ensemble stronger. Alba is reduced to just another good looking woman, and I don't know why Yeoh signed up for this one in the first place.

The film is far too weak to have been salvaged by Statham. Yes, there are enjoyable action sequences. But none that would leave you awestruck and imagining yourself as Statham on the ride back home. The plot is unoriginal and has been tried out before. The dialogues could have been much better; at times it feels that the actors just improvised on set. The cinematography, on the other hand, is fairly decent.

And, let's not talk about character development because there is none. It feels as if the director tried to pack in too much in too little time, and failed miserably. The film lacks the intensity of its predecessor. If Gansel was thinking of turning the Mechanic series into something similar to popular franchises such as Jason Bourne, he couldn't have been more wrong. At the end of the film, you're left with a product that shouldn't have been made in the first place. The Mechanic was an average action film that one might still watch when nothing better is on. And, Statham has enough acting prowess to pull off a good film; case in point: Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. If you're not a Statham fan and haven't seen the first film, don't even bother with this one. The only thing Mechanic: Resurrection manages to resurrect, if somewhat miserably, is Alba's career.