So I was looking forward to Mechanic: Resurrection coming out on Netflix. I wanted to see the theatrical release last year, but I don’t get the chance to go to the cinema very often. Occasionally I attend screenings of rather niche artistic oeuvres, in a professional capacity, seated in the row behind my target, but I always have to leave long before the lights come up. Anyway, I enjoyed the original Mechanic (both the remake and the 1972 original) well enough, so I was looking forward to the sequel. But disappointingly, it falls back into tired, offensive stereotypes and problematic themes.
Before I get into criticism, let me say, I don’t have a problem with Jason Statham playing one of us. He might not identify as an assassin himself, but he’s tried to portray our lifestyle sensitively in a few movies. However, he is rather pandering to the stereotype. In future, I would like to see a range of body types represented in depictions of hitmen (and hit-non-men). Dmitry, for example, is a Person Of Size (POS) and he doesn’t often see gangsters who look like him. And we never really see gender identity explored properly. All it would take is one throwaway line of The Stath saying “did I mention I’m non-binary?” That’s all it needs.
Perhaps the most problematic theme in Mechanic: Resurrection is that our hero, Arthur Bishop, finds himself violently coerced into employment. Now, I’m not saying this never happens in our industry, but it happens so rarely as to be beneath concern, and everyone should forget about it. It’s offensive to deny us our agency and paint us all as victims, instead of the *~Happy Hitters~* that we all really are.
Anyway, I’m planning on critiquing more popular entertainment media, through a progressive lens, so watch this space for updates! ^_^
NOTE: Please stop asking me to criticise recordings of non-fictional violence such as beheadings, executions, extremist recruitment videos etc., because there is absolutely nothing wrong with them and they have no impact on wider culture. They are very popular on the Internet, and lots of assigned-male-at-births enjoy watching them, so leave them alone! >_<