Samuel L. Jackson trades yelling at superheroes in The Avengers for wandering the streets of Toronto in this ruffled, hungover film noir. A doughy, frayed ex-con artist, Jackson begins The Samaritan exiting a 25-year prison sentence for murdering his partner, and soon finds life has been waiting all this time to collect. Plot really only gets in the film’s way, as jazzy heist-planning and a dash of Oldboy-inspired melodrama threaten to derail any built-up goodwill. A cheaper film might stack twists upon betrayals, but director David Weaver (Century Hotel) seems to know enough to back away and allow an emotional conclusion. It’s Jackson though, proving he can still act, who’s the star here. It might be the same exhausted-old-man role that every aging male actor eventually plays, but Jackson giving it his damnedest is a sight to see.
This article appears in May 31 – Jun 6, 2012.