MovieChat Forums > The Equalizer (2014) Discussion > McCall is a psychopath pretending to be ...

McCall is a psychopath pretending to be a saint?

posted 10 years ago by tommyk1287
26 replies | jump to latest

This movie is already all about preaching from its high-horse, then shows us the deadly super-secret hero McCall murdering people with almost sadistic satisfaction. I understand they were some horrible people and deserved to die, but watching HOW McCall kills them, can you say he did so with absolute piety and morality?

I think having a perfect protagonist is boring, I like my hero having a bit of a dark side, but to parade him around as Jesus Christ then make him sledgehammer a common street thief to death? That's way too far. The worst offense was definitely at the warehouse near the end. McCall strings a guy up by the neck and watches him sloooowly suffocate, stares him right in the eye the whole time like he gets off on it. Even the Punisher: Warzone didn't torture its villains like this, and that was basically a grindhouse film.

Coming from someone who's seen both Human Centipedes and A Serbian Film, I think The Equalizer is one sick twisted disgusting movie. Not to mention it was boring as hell.

[–] Nomad-1968 9 years ago

I don't think McCall is a psychopath - he doesn't take pleasure from other people's pain even when they deserve it. He is emotionally detached/dispassionate but then so are most cops, paramedics and military personnel (combat lines particularly).

In the original TV series there is one episode "The Distant Fire"? where McCall has a conversation with another former operative who is now a hitman and they talk about having visions of Hell. I am going back 30 years here but I seem to recall that McCall says this is why now he atones the things he did in the past by helping save the weak and vulnerable from evil people.

Hardly a psychopath/sociopath.

The Russian bad guy in the movie is much more of a psycho/socio-path.

I didn't find the movie boring - but some of the music was jarring IMHO and would have been better with a proper film score.

[–] ezgoingkev 9 years ago

It is about a men's quest for redemption...

[–] Ithilfaen 9 years ago

I don't think McCall is a psychopath - he doesn't take pleasure from other people's pain even when they deserve it.

I think you're confusing psychopaths and sadists. Psychopaths don't typically take pleasure in people's pain. They just don't care if people are in pain.

He is emotionally detached/dispassionate

That would bring him close to psychopaths but obviously he's not. He's neither manipulative, nor truly detached. He has empathy. Otherwise he wouldn't get involved in the first place, with the kid or with the people at work.

For every lie I unlearn I learn something new - Ani Difranco

[–] mboyleg 9 years ago

Yes, but it is a feel good movie in the sense that we are all vulnerable and we all sanction that idea that we are protected, no matter how. In a civilized world, we live in our own protective bubble. And that works. But, in the real world, there are humans we pass in the streets every day that intend to eventually do us harm. We have to be prepared for those people and to understand that there are another species out there who will do harm to the bad buys in the name of justice. And to appreciate it no matter what we think of the means.

[–] KidSixXx 9 years ago

To paraphrase Orwell, people sleep well at night because men with rough hands like McCall are more than willing to commit violent acts on our behalf.

[–] Gabe1972 9 years ago

Efficiency doesn't make a psychopath, and there are a few scenes in the film that show that he is absolutely NOT a psychopath.

I just threw up a little in my mouth.

[–] actionmanrandell 8 years ago

he didn't use a sledgehammer on a common street thief. the movie specifically state that said thief actually murdered someone in a robery

[–] Hanz-Willhelm2 8 years ago

It's all good.

Everyone got what they had coming to them.

He's the hero.

Was ist der Sinn des Lebens?

[–] tommyk1287 8 years ago

You know, I think it's this simple, black-and-white approach to good and evil that actually makes me hate this movie. "Don't think too hard, everyone was evil, McCall is good. The End." I've seen Denzel play some good characters, and even as a hero he can portray their dark side. In this movie, he was a saint, and no matter what he did he would always be perfect, because all of the villains are just so evil that nobody will ever miss them. Nobody feels human in this movie, they're all just caricatures pretending to be in a serious crime movie.

I'm sorry if I'm being too harsh, I don't blame people for liking the movie. It's definitely not as bad as most movies out there. Some of the actions scenes are well done, namely the first time Denzel fights, but it's just too shallow to take itself so seriously.

[–] Hanz-Willhelm2 8 years ago

Well, the plot does focus on the world of human trafficking, the mob, and an extremely violent and evil crime ring. They aren't on every corner but these things really do exist. Have you read the stuff that goes on with these Mexican drug cartels? Did you read about the Oklahoma girl Carina Saunders in which a human trafficking ring sawed her up alive to make an example to the other girls to obey or else? http://kfor.com/2012/07/23/men-charged-in-murder-of-carina-saunders/

You probably don't get to look deeply inside of these things very often but they do exist. Pretty much most of the people involved in these things are the cock roaches of the planet. Their deaths are welcome.

Sure, this isn't your typical every day evil but there is definitely lots of it out there. You are more than welcome to think it's too far fetched and the bad guys were too one dimensional.

Was ist der Sinn des Lebens?

[–] !!!deleted!!! (4524359) 8 years ago

The biggest tell that he's not a psychopath is that nothing he did was out of selfinterest. He was doing all that to save the girl no strings attached. Why would he do that if he was a psychopath? He clearly has empathy, but only for those he thinks are worthy of it.