Normal
- 11 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Bob Odenkirk is the new Liam Neeson.
Didn't see that one coming.
NORMAL is another hugely entertaining action thriller and a great follow up to Odenkirk's "Nobody" flicks. In those films, he played a former agent who's just trying to retire.
This time out, he's Ulysses Richardson, a good lawman who's found quiet respite as a fill in sheriff in a very small, very cold Minnesota town that might remind you of a little place called Fargo.
The townspeople certainly are the same kind of folk. Quick with a warm smile and a wave, the town seems to be hugely prosperous under the guidance of Mayor Kibner, played by a foul mouthed, very confident Henry Winkler. He's terrific, playing against type and owning it.
Ulysses narrates the film via long messages he's leaving for his estranged wife. Something in his law enforcement past is haunting him, leaving him restless in the local fleabag motel.
His deputy Mike Nelson is an absolute idiot, hilariously played by Billy MacLellan (Nobody). A people pleaser of the highest order, some of his interactions with the feuding citizenry left me laughing loudly, especially watching Odenkirk react to them.
An almost unrecognizably frumpy Lena Headley (Game of Thrones, 300) plays Moira, the town bartender with a ready pour and an eye for bullshit.
Ryan Allen is Deputy Anderson, who might not be the best shot in the force, but he's got a lot of enthusiasm.
The armory at the police station would make Rambo proud. Seems like a lot of firepower for this little frozen berg.
Just as Ulysses is beginning to have strong suspicions that this tiny town seems to have a whole lot of unexplained money, two outsiders Lori (Reena Jolly) and Keith (Brendan Fletcher) decide to rob the downtown bank, where the town's mysteries are deeply rooted.
What happens next is part action thriller, part laugh out loud comedy and 100% entertaining.
By the time a squad of Yakuza fighters are landing in a private jet to descend on the town and about 50 bodies litter the streets in a huge variety of pieces, I was having one hell of a great time.
Odenkirk creates a character to cheer for in Ulysses. He's a good man looking to wind down and hide, drawn into a massive battle in which he's got nothing to lose.
The sheer variety of lethal characters that populate Main Street had me smiling ear to ear throughout.
Derek Kolstad, the creator of John Wick and the screenwriter of the first three films in that series, brings the same depth of character building and mad fight scenes to this snowy little burg that he did to Mr. Wick and The Continental.
There are huge echoes of Neo-Western lore here, with High Noon coming to mind in Ulysses man-against-the-entire-town story.
Fargo fans will get a chuckle out of Sheriff Gunderson as well.
Like the Wick films, the extreme violence reaches almost slapstick proportions and serves up real suspense and gory fun.
I don't know how much weapons training that Odenkirk's been through, but between this and the Nobody films, he's an unlikely and very believable action hero. He may be fighting yokels here, but they're motivated.
The grand finale with the Yakuza is funny as hell, especially the way it starts, but it's also Tarantino worthy in its close quarters, bloody mayhem. I laughed out loud more than a few times.
Like Wick, Ulysses is an on screen hero who sits down out of breath, half broken and bleeding at the end of every confrontation. I don't know how in the hell he kept getting up for the next fight, but I was always glad he did.
This is a fascinating and very enjoyable, weird blend of John Wick and a John Wayne western. Who knew those Johns blended together would serve up something so fast & fun?
NORMAL is anything but and gets a very solid B for its double barrel blast of action and laughs.
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