The Contractor

One of the most valued and patriotic people in our country is that of the military, whether they be active or veteran. However, there are situations where soldiers are mistreated or considered outright expendable depending on the powers that be that have an agenda. When a soldier(s) are discharged due to a situation that fully becomes political, it's enough to make one gag. Case in point is a soldier in "The Contractor" where he is left high and dry with no way to take care of his family. What is one to do?

Chris Pine stars in the action-packed thriller as Special Forces Sergeant James Harper, who is involuntarily discharged from the Army and cut off from his pension. In amazing debt, out of options and desperate to provide for his family including his wife, Brianne (Gillian Jacobs) and son, Jack (Sander Thomas), Harper, through his bro Mike (Ben Foster), contracts with a private underground military force headed up by an ex special forces soldier, Rusty (Kiefer Sutherland). When the very first assignment goes awry, the elite soldier finds himself hunted and on the run, caught in a dangerous conspiracy and fighting to stay alive long enough to get home and uncover the true motives of those who betrayed him. 

Others to round out the cast are Eddie Marsan as Virgil, JD Pardo as Eric, Florian Munteanu as Kaufman, Nina Hoss as Katia, Amira Casar as Sylvie, Fares Fares as Salim and Aristou Meehan as Yanis. 

This was intensely directed with amazing grit by Tarik Saleh ("Gitmo" (documentary) '05, "Kronofogden/The Repo Man" (TV movie) '09, "Metropia" '09, "Tommy" '14, "The Nile Hilton Incident" '17) plus TV, a video and a short. Even though this filmmaker has quite the eclectic resume, he still was able to convey to his audience a riveting expose of what happens when the military goes underground. He was simply consummate at being able to extract the intensity and frenzy from his actors, so much so, that it became ultimately a realistic looking outcome. If this director is to your liking, his "Boy from Heaven" is being filmed at this point for a 2022 release. It was frenetically and intensely written by J.P. Davis ("Fighting Tommy Riley" '04, "The Neighbor" '07) plus TV. Although this writer doesn't have an extravagant resume, he certainly knew how to construct an intriguing script. It starts out fairly straightforward, but becomes in rapid succession a gritty thriller rife with mystery and several twists and turns that will have you guessing around the next corner. After a certain point, you'll wonder how or if he will ever get out of one predicament after another. Really, other than a couple of small places of unexplainable situations, this plot simply keeps the audience on the edge of their proverbial seats. 

If military and/or espionage type of films are to your liking, this is the film for you. This is the first film with the teaming of Chis Pine and Ben Foster since they starred in "Hell or High Water" with Jeff Bridges, and their performance in this was every bit as suspenseful as with the other film. It's a great cat-and-mouse game where it has you guessing repeatedly, which definitely makes it worthy of the price of admission. 

Out of 4 Stars: 3.5                                                 Rated: R                                                   103mins.