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The first reviews for The Contractor are in. The upcoming action movie, out in cinemas and on digital storefronts from April 1, sees Chris Pine channel his inner Jason Bourne as James Harper. Facing the possibility of being destitute and with a family to support, Harper’s murky dealings with an underground military operation soon spiral out of control as he faces a fight to stay alive.
Unfortunately for those expecting a John Wick-style surprise hit, The Contractor – according to critics, anyway – is a more predictable by-the-numbers affair that does at least find merit in a strong performance from Chris Pine and action sequences marshalled home by director Tarik Saleh.
IGN – 7/10
"The Contractor may not have the greatest action scenes or ending, but its heart – which it wears on its sleeve – still makes it worth watching. Chris Pine gives a superb performance as a man who’s been forced to make some tough decisions after he was abandoned by the country he spent his whole life serving. It’s an emotional examination of how others can take advantage of us at our weakest, but also how our love for those we hold dear can make the impossible happen."
The Playlist – C-
"Throughout The Contractor there is an air of rigorous yet forgettable competence. Director Tarik Saleh acquits himself well in his first job with an A-list actor. The action sequences are clear-eyed and well-executed if workmanlike, and cinematographer Pierre Aim accomplishes the objective of contrasting picket-fence America with the grimier corners of Berlin. But straining through it all is a reach that Saleh can’t grasp, a film aching to present big ideas and a rich discourse that just isn’t found in the screenplay by J.P. Davis. The Contractor shows its hand with a bullet-riddled and blood-splattered climax, choosing spectacle over substance, and an ending that nudges a door open for Jack Harper to return in another installment, playing a similar role to another famous ex-soldier — Jack Reacher."
The Hollywood Reporter
"In a welcome change of pace from the glossy superheroics and sci-fi of high-profile movie franchises, Pine delivers a performance that’s fueled by its tightly coiled restraint. In a glance, a grimace or the way he leans James’ motorcycle into the curves of a rural road, the actor reveals volumes about his character’s preternatural focus as well as his gnawing doubts. He has fine scene partners too, key among them Gillian Jacobs, as James’ understandably anxious wife, Brianne, and Eddie Marsan, who plays an ex-military tarnished angel of sorts who provides safe-house shelter when James finds himself a hunted man in Berlin."
Slant Magazine – 1.5/4
"In the end, The Contractor jettisons most of its underlying interests to simply settle for an old-fashioned tale of a righteous tough guy trying to find a way home to his wife and son – two characters who are as interchangeable as any of the nameless henchman who James dispatches along the way."
Variety
"The Bourne movies revivified the espionage genre with their nimble, scrappy, down-and-dirty action. But they weren’t as widely imitated as one might have expected, which leaves The Contractor feeling like a relatively fresh chip off a not-so-old block."
For more on 2022's upcoming movies, check out our guide to movie release dates.
