If you have a movie about a guy with a job who is also ready to take out a plethora of bad guys with relative ease then you’ve likely been in touch with Jason Statham to play the part. From a transporter to a mechanic to a beekeeper and now just a straight up working man, Statham is the go-to guy for movies where people just need to get their asses kicked by someone for 90 to 120 minutes. His latest venture, A Working Man, is fairly cut-and-paste for action fans, but that doesn’t mean it’s still not entertaining enough to warrant a watch.
Statham plays Levon Cade, an ex-Royal Marine Commando who left that life behind in order to take care of his daughter after his wife committed suicide. His daughter, Merry (Isla Gie), lives with her grandfather, Dr. Jordan Roth, who believes that Cade is to blame for Merry being without a mother and as such is fighting for Cade to lose what little solo visitation time he has with his daughter.
Cade is saving up what he can to take Roth to court and fight this and he does so by sleeping in his car and working as the foreman for the Garcia family construction company. He’s grown close with them over the years, so when their daughter, Jenny (Arianna Rivas), is kidnapped, her father Joe (Michael Peña) asks Cade for his help in bringing her home. Cade apologizes and says he can’t do it, that he’s left that life behind, but then immediately goes and sees an old army pal of his named Gunny (David Harbour) so that he’ll tell him it’s okay to take on the deadly task.
A Working Man kind of feels like Taken-lite, where as Taken had what felt like higher stakes and a ticking clock for Bryan Mills to find his daughter before she vanished for good, A Working Man sees Cade tear through a Russian crime organization in slower fashion in order to find Jenny, who, while also taken feels like she’s just kind of waiting on being found instead of being in any real danger. They do try to up the stakes as she’s brought to someone who pays to have his way with her as she’s drugged up, but off-screen she bites his cheek off and he simply throws her and the two traffickers who brought her out of his house while bleeding profusely as his cheek hangs off the side of his face. Is that how this would work? I’m pretty sure if this actually happened this evil, rich now disfigured guy would just kill her on the spot.
But that’s the thing with movies like these, you can’t take them too seriously. Going back to Taken, sure it’s also a gritty action flick, but there are also proper elements of suspense and thrills (at least in the first film) that take it up a notch. When you sit down to watch A Working Man, you’re sitting down ready to watch Jason Statham beat the crap out of a bunch of bad guys who have it coming with whatever instrument he currently has at his disposal.
The film is based off the book by Chuck Dixon and is written by Sylvester Stallone and David Ayer, who also directs it. I’d say that it’s a bit long-in-the-tooth at almost two-hours total, as there are a lot of characters and moving parts to the movie to try and showcase all the routes Cade can take to find what he’s after, but instead of intriguing it feels a bit redundant at times and dropping 15 or so minutes would tighten it up nicely in the pacing department.
In short, if you’re looking for a fun action flick that you can just turn on, grab some popcorn and enjoy, then A Working Man will fit the bill. While he can often play a similar part, Statham can’t be accused of phoning it in, as he delivers in every area asked of him and carries the film. The action is solid, punches are never pulled and blood flies and bones break – it’s everything that one would expect from a Statham film. I don’t want to say if you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all, because while you do know what you’re getting into, that’s simply not the case. Some of Statham’s library is stronger than other parts of it and I’d say A Working Man lands pretty much in the middle, where it delivers a good enough time to have warranted to watch, but it’s also not a movie that’s going to have you clocking overtime for repeat viewings.
4K Blu-ray Video and Audio Review:
The film looks great in 4K/HDR10, as I’d say the majority of the movie takes place in darker locations and the resolution here makes those scenes clean and clear with no muddying in the blacks or shadows. The lighting is bright and characters pop (as do bones!) nicely. The details in clothing and settings also come out nicely, so without much surprise the 4K release is what to aim for if you’re looking to add this to your collection full time.
On the audio side of things we’ve got a solid Dolby Atmos track that brings the viewer into the action nicely. With a surround setup you’ll hear gunfire from all angles, voices calling out, bones snapping left and right and the dialogue coming through front and center without battling for audio superiority with the rest of the tracks. All in all it’s a nice one-two punch combo for action fans to enjoy.
Special Features:
This one comes up empty in this department, which isn’t surprising. While even a small feature would be nice, sometimes it’s just expected that the release is all we’ll get.
Disclaimer: A review copy of this Blu-ray was sent to me to cover in honest and truthful fashion.
Warner Bros. Pictures Presents A Working Man. Directed by: David Ayer. Written by: Sylvester Stallone, David Ayer. Starring: Jason Statham, David Harbour, Michael Peña, Arianna Rivas, Isla Gie, Maximillian Osinski, Eve Mauro, Emmett J Scanlan. Running time: 116 Minutes. Rating: R. Released on 4K Blu-ray: June 10, 2025.
About Brendan Campbell
