Should we be concerned about Bob Odenkirk’s self confidence, or something? The former Saul Goodman may appear, Liam Neeson style, as a mature-aged action stalwart these days, but after starring in the modestly titled Nobody movies, his next explosive opus is simply named “Normal”. Still, it certainly helps that aiding him with that humble ego is none other than Ben Wheatley, who seems to be eager to leap back in the realms of the slapstick actioner after wrangling giant sharks in The Meg 2 and a metric ton of bullets in Free Fire.
Aiming for some sort of combustible mix by merging the sarcastic crime outings of the Coen Brothers with the extravagant bombast of John Woo by ways of Edgar Wright’s Hot Fuzz, can Odenkirk manage to expand on his growing list of under-the-radar heroes while continuing to prove that blowing the brains out of an enemy isn’t necessarily a young man’s game?
Ulysses is serving his first week in an eight week engagement as the interim sheriff of the small Minnesota town of Normal after the previous sheriff froze to death after apparently experiencing heart problems. Haunted by the type of past that tends to afflict most people who are uncomfortable staying in one place too long and still mourning a failed marriage, by his own admission Ulysses has checked out on life and his happy to just go with the flow while not making any waves as he passes through. However, even someone uninterested at making a difference as he can’t help but notice that Normal is thriving despite most other small American towns feeling the financial pinch. Nevertheless, Ulysses is adamant that he’s going to leave the town exactly the way he found it as he negotiates his way through such locals as an exuberant Mayor, over eager deputies and World weary bar owners with impressive bullshit detectors.
However, this all changes in a heartbeat when two desperate, young ciminal wannabes think it’s a good idea to rob the local bank which sets of an outlandish chain of events that exposes a deep, dark secret the people of Normal would rather their temporary sheriff didn’t find out. In the midst of some whizzing bullets that get fired his way by his own sheriff’s department, Ulysses suddenly finds himself facing a hostile town with only two terrified bank robbers to back him up.
What on earth could have an entire town so worked up, they’ll go to war with their own sheriff on the very streets they travel every day and what would make them so terrified they’ll risk their lives to protect what’s sitting in that bank vault. Once Ulysses finds out, he realises that his days of sitting on the sidelines are over – or at least they should be unless he wants a mustache full of hot lead. But even if he can persevere against the not-so good folk of Normal, what chance does he have against – the Yakuza!?
Look, I love Ben Wheatley just as much as the next guy, but even he isn’t director enough to blend the sensibilities of both Woo, Wright and the Coens within a 90 minute movie. However, what I will say is that it’s an extremely pleasant experience watching him try and while Normal may not be the most memorable of action comedies (certainly not as memorable as Fargo, Hard Boiled, or Hot Fuzz, anyway), there’s enough cool, indie-style quirks to keep it running at nicely unpredictable chug. In fact, there are more than a few moments where Normal will no doubt have you chortling out loud as it’s ridiculous plot gradually unfolds and that’s due to the fact that both Weatley and Odenkirk have some keen comic timing. But once all the gunsmoke eventually clears, there’s a good chance that it’s memory will have evaporated right along side it.
However, while Normal is doing its thing, it proves to be an incredibly suitable night at the movies as Odenkirk proves that he really does have this rumbled action hero thing down pat. Indulging in the same, mild mannered sense of self loathing that powered Nobody, we find him playing yet another lost soul who has found themselves wandering aimlessly as their moral centre has taken a gap year. Much like the ineffectual, burnt out lawmen of countless Westerns from days gone by, Odenkirk seems to be the current North star of washed up do gooders who get another chance at life thanks to acts of desperate violence. In fact, while acting as the heart of the film, he manages to stabilise and inject a lot of heart into the film while everyone else is free to go for the characters quirks. Henry Winkler goes big as the Mayor; Billy MacLellan goes doofy as a leather jacket-obsessed deputy and Lena Headey gets her small-town swagger on as the tough-talking bar owner who gets Ulysses to open up about the past that made him so bitter – but while everyone’s clearly having fun, no one’s managing to stand out much either and as a result, Reena Jolly and Brenden Fletcher’s well-meaning, passive bank robbers barely register much at all amid the muzzle flashes and explosions.
However, propping up Odenkirk’s endearing, world-weary shtick is Wheatley’s impish desire to hit the gas at the halfway point and start nailing you with unlikely, yet highly amusing death sequences or bizarre plot twists. When someone isn’t getting blown up with a grenade launcher while their attention is elsewhere, and entire third act rug pull occurs where an insane ruse is put in place that starts out bizarrely feeling first like a major plot point from Blazing Saddles and then suddenly goes all Tony Scott. In fact, at numerous times, it feels that Wheatley is just using the film as an excuse to riff on some of his favorite directors instead of using his own directorial voice – which is probably why it feels less distinct than, say, Free Fire, which gave a very Wheatley-style feeling to the copious gunfights.
And yet, everytime your attention starts to wane, some poor bastard buys it in a way that’ll make you give an amused snort and I have to say, that final, left-field third act is strangely wonderful, even if it feels like it wandered in from a previous draft. But once again, it’s the sight of Odenkirk beating the fuck out of assailants with a meat tenderizer, or engaging in a running gun battle with a little old lady with a double barrelled shotgun, that’s the cement that holds the film together. Whether it’s a Nobody, a Normal or some other title that implies some sort of insignificant thing, the aging white dude that I am can’t help that thrill at the sight of a 63 year old acting his age while simultaneously fucking up wrong doers.
Hardly ground breaking, Normal nevertheless is a solid entry into the aging action stakes that delivers enough laughs and surprises to justify its snowy existence. It’s no John Wick beater, and I’d even say it can’t best the first Nobody, but Normal proves to be weird enough for a fun hour and a half.
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