HOLLYWOOD—Jason Statham has been known as an action star for as long as I can remember. This is the guy who is notorious for putting a beating on the good guys and the bad guys in cinema. His latest flick, “Wrath of Man” proves why Jason Statham is synonymous with the term, ‘Action Star.’ His latest outing is really a tale of revenge people and when I say revenge I mean just that, but it loses points for not fully pushing the envelope based on its title.

Guy Ritchie directs Statham is this tale of revenge that finds Patrick, better known as ‘H’ does his best to avenge the death of his son Dougie (Eli Brown). It’s a classic revenge tale that becomes a bit convoluted for me at points that lost my interest. Why is that? It attempts to be smarter than what it needs to be. H infiltrates Fortico Security, an armored truck company that is known for handling and transporting a ton of money. There are elements of a heist flick in “Wrath of Man,” but they don’t fully play out as the viewer expects.

We have an opening that sets the stage for the movie, but it ultimately plays out in a reverse chronological order that I think confuses the viewer more than anything. The script tries to be smarter than it needs to be. If the narrative would have just played out on a linear path instead of attempting to utilize flashbacks to tie in with the present, as we continue to play with time, the movie would have a much stronger pace.

That is the biggest problem, the pacing throws the viewer off on a grand scale because I found moments where I was bored with what was taking place on the screen. The audience immediately knows something is off with H, but the payoff isn’t worth all the hoops that the movie takes to expose the truth. This man is a marksman, who knows how to fire a gun like no one else, but purposely does the bare minimum to infiltrate this company, who very few catch up on the mayhem until it’s too late people. It is no surprise that he infiltrated this company; it is so obvious you can see it from a million miles away.

“Wrath of Man” has an eclectic cast that includes Jeffery Donovan, Andy Garcia, Josh Hartnett, Holt McCallany, Laz Alonso and Scott Eastwood. Hartnett’s character, Dave is quite fun, but his talent is barely utilized in the movie and Eastwood is becoming a bit one note with his villainous turns as of late on the big screen. It works, but he is not the menacing big bad that the audience craves from a movie like “Wrath of Man.” It feels tame in comparison to some revenge tales were we actually see the hero go to extreme lengths to exact that revenge, however, this movie allows our title character to exact his revenge, but it is NOT as satisfying as you would expect.

Statham shines in the role that really doesn’t amp the action until the climax which is disappointment when you realize this flick has been categorized as action-packed. I wanted more action, more violence, more chaos, and I got whimpers of each. “Wrath of Man” is tolerable, but nothing I would run to the theater to see right away.