Tuesday, September 25, 2018

THE DEBT COLLECTOR (2018) **


Scott Adkins is a karate teacher in danger of losing his school to the bank.  To make ends meet, he gets a job as a loan shark for a local kingpin (Vladimir Kulich).  He’s paired up with a perpetually hungover leg-breaker (Louis Mandylor) and they go around town collecting money.  Along the way, they get into various scuffles, and bond over breaking bones.  Things take a turn when a rival gangster (Tony Todd) hires them to find the person responsible for ripping him off.

The Debt Collector is the third Adkins collaboration with director Jesse V. Johnson in the past two years.  It’s not as successful as their previous collaborations, Savage Dog or Accident Man, but it’s an OK attempt to broaden Adkins’ range a bit.  Johnson deserves some credit.  Each of these films have all been different in terms of style and tone.  Although this is by far my least favorite of the three, it’s nice to know he’s capable of creating a variety of nuances within the genre.

The film is at its best during the first half, which plays like a gangster version of Training Day.  It’s not quite as interesting once a semblance of a plot begins to take hold.  It’s here where things become a tad predictable.  I liked it better when Adkins and Mandylor were just cruising around and breaking bones.  I could’ve also done without all the heavy-handed footage of a slaughterhouse that is peppered throughout the action.

Adkins gives a solid performance and Mandylor is quite good as the former B movie actor-turned-loan shark.  I just wish the banter between the two was funnier.  The other attempts at humor are equally hit-and-miss throughout the film.

Since this is an Adkins/Johnson joint, that means there are plenty of fight scenes to go around.  They aren’t bad for what they are, but they lack the gory highs of Savage Dog or the humor of Accident Man.  Even if The Debt Collector is a tad off the mark, there’s enough compelling evidence here to suggest I’m more than likely to sit through the duo’s next collaboration.

AKA:  Pay Day.

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