Arthur Bishop is a 'mechanic' - an elite assassin with a strict code and unique talent for cleanly eliminating targets. It's a job that requires professional perfection and total detachment, and Bishop is the best in the business. But when he is ordered to take out his mentor and close friend Harry, Bishop is anything but detached.
The new stunts are explosive, over-the-top and a sign of the times -- action fans aren't happy these days, it seems, unless at least one scene involves a jackknifing 18-wheeler and a fireball.
– Stephen Whitty,
Newark Star-Ledger,
29 Jan 2011
fresh:
Statham is a model of control; he's steely and graceful in his action scenes, and his interplay with the wiry Foster delivers the goods.
– Bruce Diones,
New Yorker,
7 Feb 2011
rotten:
Clinging to false heroism and terrified of anything too dark, The Mechanic is a tough-guy movie for wimps.
– Rafer Guzman,
Newsday,
19 Feb 2011
rotten:
The Mechanic is like a Beretta loaded with blanks -- quick and brutal but ultimately empty.
– Una LaMarche,
New York Observer,
4 Apr 2011
fresh:
Statham, he of the chiseled physique and sexily receding hairline, holds his own here, doing what he has to in scenes and no more -- which is perfect for a movie like this.