“Peppermint” is basically a gender flip of “The Punisher.” Jennifer Garner plays Riley North, whose husband and daughter are gunned down by gang-bangers due to some poor decisions the husband had made. After an outburst in court when the killers are set free, Riley is to be sent to a mental hospital; however, she escapes and disappears.
Fast-forward five years and Riley has returned to take revenge on the people who ruined her life. This may be believable except that the filmmakers never tell us how she trained herself to become an elite killing machine. Bits and pieces are explained by the police — she robbed a bank and has popped up in a few internet fight videos — and as a viewer we are supposed to accept this is enough. This is my main complaint about the movie.
Directed by Pierre Morel, who also helmed “Taken,” the rest of the movie is a typical revenge film in which Riley is badass and systematically goes after each bad guy in the chain up to the top.
“Peppermint” asks whether or not the vigilante is a good thing in the city. Newscasters and citizens discuss whether Riley is helping or hurting society by killing bad people. This theme has been played out for years in “Batman” and “The Punisher,” and most recently even the remake of “Death Wish” put it front and center, so it really did nothing for me.
The movie has some really good action, a few decent one-liners and a plot twist or two, and overall it is enjoyable but very forgettable. For what it’s worth, Garner does turn in a solid performance, calling to mind her days on “Alias,” which helps to keep the film somewhat interesting. As an action movie junkie, I didn’t hate “Peppermint” as much as most people did, but there really isn’t a lot to say about it. Watch the trailer and you know what you’re getting.