When I think about Jennifer Garner first of all I think about her Hollywood marriage and subsequent break up with actor director writer and now multi millionaire AI CEO Ben Affleck. The pair after a well publicised separation (after 10 years of marriage) back in 2015 and Ben Affleck seeking treatment for alcohol addiction, have both been highly successful in business ventures outside of Hollywood.
Garner joined organic food company Once Upon a Farm as a stake holder in 2017. She holds an equity stake valued between $55 million and $64 million following the company's initial public offering (IPO)
Ben Affleck made £587 million selling his filmaking AI solution to Netflix whilst advocating against AI in Hollywood in order to protect creativity and jobs. A great solution or a well organised bait and switch to make a load of money. The jury is still out.
I digress.
In Peppermint Jennifer Garner shows what a highly versatile film and TV actress she is, remembered for roles like Nurse Sandra in Pearl Harbor (2001) in Daredevil (2003) she played Elektra Natchios. 13 Going on 30 (2004) as Jenna Rink and in Elektra (2005) as Elektra.
In 2007 she was back Vanessa Loring in Juno and then a memorable performance, as Dr Eve Saks in the fabulous Dallas Buyers Club 2013.
And who could forget that memorable cameo opposite Leonardo Di Caprio in Catch Me If You Can as Cheryl the call girl who out smarts the out smartable.
Despite never receiving an Oscar nod, she’s surprisingly never even been nominated, she did win a Golden Globe for her breakout role in Alias, a TV series I will be revisiting after watching this epic performance in Peppermint.
Although Peppermint is not the kind of film I would ever watch normally from the movie synopsis, violence, action, death and destruction, guns, gangs, etc it was an absolutely edge of your seat heart racing fast paste epic. I absolutely loved it.
Not for the faint hearted or the squeamish, in the first 10 minutes I did have to close my eyes a couple of the times, the on screen violence is brutal as someone is about to be garrotted, too much for me, (the gang leader and drug lord Diego Garcia has the nickname “La Guillotina" Spanish for "The Guillotine" and director Pierre Morel validates these character building credentials early in the film.
He earned this terrifying alias due to his signature method of execution—killing his enemies by cutting off their heads, something we witness at the beginning of the film. A look away now moment for me.
But this is actually a chick flick. Garner is magnificent as a girl scout cookie selling “soccer Mom” turned vigilante Riley North. After her life is devastated by a drive by shooting, a gangland style execution of her husband and child Carly and a corrupt federal judge and a bent LAPD fails her, she goes under ground for 5 years returning to Los Angeles three months before the 5 year anniversary of the execution to take her revenge.
I usually hate watching a film with ad breaks, but this one aired in Film 4 I actually didn’t mind the adverts. The film is so action packed you almost need the breaks to recover.
I won’t tell you what happens except to say, you find yourself cheering on this normal woman turned self trained assassin. Think Girl With the Dragon Tattoo meets Killing Eve.
The level of violence is off the charts, but the one liners are quotable,
When Diego Garcia says;
"I can hear the pain in your voice. You're hurting. You're hurting bad. Out-manned, out-gunned. How you really think this is gonna go?
Riley calmly replies, “I'm gonna shoot you in your fucking face. And then I'll pretty much figure it out from there.”
Garner is completely believable in this role, Riley North is a character you could never forget and every woman longs deep down to find a piece of her somewhere inside. I think that’s is what makes this film so relatable especially for women who in the most part don’t lean towards on screen violence on this scale or scope.
It’s an ugly world out there. And sometimes when it’s us or them we have to do bad things to survive.
This film is a stark reminder of how corruption invades every area of public life, our governments, every public body, every police force and whilst taking the law into our own hands and machine gunning down the baddies is obviously not the right course of action as human beings, great filmmakers can tap into that deep feeling in all of us that sometimes the end does justify the means.
Not only is the film totally magnificent in every way, exciting, thrilling, memorable, fantastically shot, gripping, engaging, dramatic it is also empowering, inspiring, and presents a massive ethical dilemma.
With a spectacular deeply thought provoking and unexpected clever ending.
Who would watch: anyone who likes crime thrillers, drama, heart racing action, high violence. For a couple wanting a film that will suit a mixed movie taste audience it’s a fantastic choice. Too violent for kids though.
Would I watch it again. Without a doubt. Brilliant film. Loved it.