Story: Dylan (Scott Eastwood), better known as D, is a man with a lot of violence in his past, so it is no wonder he feels little emotion. He is a former spec-ops agent, then a soldier of fortune, but he landed in prison at one point. But now he is out on parole and thanks to his therapist Dr. Alderwood (Mel Gibson), D feels like he is making progress. His emotions are still muted, but he is learning to cope and keeps in touch with Alderwood often, especially in tough situations. The therapy and medication are about to be put to the test however, as he receives news his brother has been killed and no sooner does he find out, than a tactical police squad is dispatched to track him down. As he heads out to find answers and avoid a prison return, will D’s new outlook help him or remove the edge he needs?

Entertainment Value: An action driven thriller with some humor blended in, Dangerous is watchable, but doesn’t achieve much beyond that. The movie held my interest, but was never captivating and I can’t see myself revisiting this one down the road. The narrative tries to freshen up a stale plot by making the main character a recovering sociopath, which is at least an effort, even if the end results don’t yield much to make it stand out. I did appreciate that the condition was at least given some backup, with D having to take time to process or reach out to his therapist, so it wasn’t just a tacked on element, though it isn’t exactly explored much, either. The scenes between D and his therapist are the highlight, with some decent action set pieces thrown in as well, but you can tell this wasn’t a high budget production. That means the action isn’t grand in scale and there are lengthy stretches between set pieces, but there is a good deal of action to soak in. I did love that the villain gave off hilarious Elon Musk vibes and I want to see Kevin Durand as Musk at some point. Dangerous isn’t a new genre classic, but it has some moments and for fans of the cast, might be worth a look.

I would guess a lot of the folks watching Dangerous were drawn in by Mel Gibson, who is all over the promotional materials for the movie. While he is indeed here and he does factor into the narrative, this is essentially a glorified cameo. Gibson is shown in the same locale throughout, sitting in an apartment and doing little besides getting drunk, which is at least on brand. He does well enough for a role that feels like it was done over Zoom, but for Gibson fans, I have to think they will feel let down, as he has little screen time and isn’t given much to do. Scott Eastwood has the lead and he is passable, but doesn’t stand out and does nothing to elevate the material. He would have been better suited for a smaller role, in my opinion, as he doesn’t have the presence or charisma of a lead. The cast also includes Famke Janssen, Tyrese Gibson, Kevin Durand, and Brendan Fletcher.

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