Marco is basically a bargain-bin John Wickโexcept itโs nowhere near John Wick. Seriously, what did I just watch? Marco, the adopted son of a gangster family, goes on a revenge spree after his close brother is killed. Sounds simple, right? Too bad the movie takes every opportunity to butcher even that basic premise.
Letโs start with the absurd, tone-deaf violence. Marcoโs grand entrance? Beating a dog to death and literally ripping its jaws apart. His brother? Falls into acid and dissolves completely, because why not? A kid gets his face smashed in with a gas cylinder. Another child? Hanged. And for what? Shock value. None of these characters have any depth, no emotional weightโjust a conveyor belt of disposable bodies. We don't even know their names, let alone see Marco share a meaningful moment with them. When they die, we're just sitting there, completely numb.
Marco: The Wannabe John Wick (Minus the Cool Factor)
Marco's entire personality boils down to one thing: chain-smoking. Thatโs it. His entire family gets wiped out, but does he grieve? Nah, he just lights up another cigarette and sprays some perfume like heโs in a Dior Sauvage ad. The villains? Completely forgettable. They're your typical โkill the heroโs familyโ bad guys with zero personality. At least in The Raid, villains like Hammer Girl, Baseball Bat Man, and the Assassin had distinct fighting styles that made their battles engaging. Here? Marco barely even has proper one-on-one fights because the villains are so bland.
Action Scenes: A Repetitive, Mindless Bloodbath
Good action can save a bad movie. This one? Not so much. Sure, the climax fight is decent, but most action sequences feel like a never-ending slog. Marco searches for a girl, kills 10,000 goons, rinse, repeat. Even John Wick does the "unstoppable assassin vs. endless enemies" thing, but at least every fight there has variety and strategyโlike the John Wick 4 staircase scene, where he gets kicked down and has to fight his way up again with real stakes. In Marco, thereโs none of that. Itโs just monotonous carnage.
Compare that to Leo, where Vijay actually struggles, or Kaithi, where Dilli faces different threats, or Vikram, where Kamal Haasan uses tactics to outmaneuver his enemies. Marco completely misses that mark.
Emotional Connection? Nonexistent
The only semi-decently written character is Victor. The rest? Background noise. The movie throws in child characters for shock factor but doesnโt even bother making them relevant. If we donโt see Marco interacting with them, why should we care when they die?
At the end of the day, Marco is just violence for the sake of violenceโno real story, no depth, just a desperate attempt to cash in on the John Wick hype. People are hyping it up for the gore, just like how Terrifier made millions despite being trash. If I want a real action movie, Iโll just rewatch Animal or John Wick.
And one last thingโMarco's villain seriously thinks heโs the Joker. The guy keeps throwing in โWhy so serious?โ lines and forcing a smile like he's doing a cheap Dark Knight cosplay. Good thing Heath Ledger isnโt alive to witness this disaster.