No one can deny that Netflix had a banner year in 2019. Just take a look at the Oscars. They bet big and it looks like they’ll be rewarded one way or another. The best way then to kick off a new cycle is to unveil a trailer for one of their fist surefire hits…or a Mark Wahlberg film. Which is to say, here’s the trailer for Spenser Confidential.
While you take a moment to take in Post Malone showing up, here’s the official synopsis:
“Spenser (Mark Wahlberg) — an ex-cop better known for making trouble than solving it — just got out of prison and is leaving Boston for good. But first he gets roped into helping his old boxing coach and mentor, Henry (Alan Arkin), with a promising amateur. That’s Hawk (Winston Duke), a brash, no-nonsense MMA fighter convinced he’ll be a tougher opponent than Spenser ever was. When two of Spenser’s former colleagues turn up murdered, he recruits Hawk and his foul-mouthed ex-girlfriend, Cissy (Iliza Shlesinger), to help him investigate and bring the culprits to justice.”
Here’s the thing, there’s a good chance that enjoying Spenser Confidential entirely hinges on how you feel about director Peter Berg. In his team-ups with Wahlberg, they’ve made Deepwater Horizon, Lone Survivor, Patriots Day & Mile 22. You know, standard buddy-action-comedy fare. The beats just feel a smidge off here. As critical of Walhberg as people can be, he can do that genre in his sleep. Two Guns. Pain & Gain. The Other Guys. He’s the kind of actor who works best when an actor challenges him, rather than let his coast.
The one element most might gloss over, is the title itself. Spencer Confidential sounds weird. Doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. Almost sounds like it belongs in a television show, no? That’s because to a degree, it does. The character is the same as the one created by novelist Robert B. Parker, who was immortalized on TV by Robert Urich, in Spenser: For Hire.
Is this trailer working for you, at all? Do you think Winston Duke can bring the same swagger that Avery Brooks did to Hawk? Where do you stand on non-prestigious Netflix films? The comment section is open to flood with your original content. Be sure to check out Spenser Confidential, when it lands on Netflix, March 6th. You already have the service, so it’s practically free. What could go wrong?
