Directed by: Julius Avery
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Javon Walton, Pilou Asbaek, Dascha Polanco, Martin Starr
I was late writing this review. I saw it on the weekend it premiered on Amazon Prime (August 27 to be precise) and one month later I remember Samaritan faintly. I recall how trashed Granite City, where the past and current action of the film takes place, looked. I remember how sunny days were hard to come by and the grayness casts a pall over everything. There is an origin story in which twins with superpowers Samaritan and Nemesis begin feuding and their fight escalates into a battle for control of the city. Legend has it that Samaritan killed Nemesis during their epic confrontation and Samaritan hasn't been seen since.
A youngster named Sam (Walton) lives in a run-down apartment complex (well, what isn't run down in Granite City?) and discovers an older man in the same complex who he believes is Samaritan. Joe Smith (Stallone) works as a garbage man, but after Joe dispatches the guys who are beating up on Sam (Karate Kid style), then Sam is utterly convinced that Joe is Samaritan. "Samaritan is dead, kid," Joe tells Sam without equivocation. Sam isn't buying it and begs Joe to come out of retirement and rid the world of Cyrus, who is attempting to resurrect Nemesis in spirit by forming a criminal organization.
Samaritan is an anti-superhero story featuring a reluctant superhero played with a touch of melancholy by Stallone. He has his reasons for being down in the dumps, which is revealed later at a crucial time. The fight sequences featuring Stallone Joe, Nemesis, or Samaritan are hugely CGI-aided, but what isn't in superhero movies? Samaritan, even when there is action on the screen, feels deflated and defeated. It isn't terrible nor is it anything special, neither fish nor fowl. Even the villain is one which we won't soon remember anytime soon.
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