Denzel Washington Was Tormented By Bill Paxton In This Forgotten Comic Book Movie

Baltasar Kormákur’s 2013 crime comedy “2 Guns,” based on the comic book series by Steven Grant and Mateus Santolouco, was a hit when it was first released, but it has since slipped from the collective consciousness like so much August-released dross. It was certainly the highest-profile release of its opening weekend, only threatened by films like the Lindsay Lohan bomb “The Canyons,” and the teen romance “The Spectacular Now.” Of course, the previous Friday, audiences flocked to the “X-Men” sequel “The Wolverine,” so it’s possible that “2 Guns” opened in the shadow of a more popular comic book movie. 

“2 Guns” is a relaxed, kooky affair that stars Denzel Washington as DEA Special Agent Robert “Bobby Beans” Trench, a hipster cop in a trilby, and Mark Wahlberg as U.S. Navy Special Operations Petty Officer 1st Class Michael “Stig” Stigman, a guy who behaves a lot like Mark Wahlberg in real life. Neither of them knows this, but they are both deep undercover, posing as criminals, and trying to take down the drug empire of Manny “Papi” Greco (Edward James Olmos). 

The plot is more complicated than is really worth covering, but Bobby Beans and Stig, still posing as criminals, resolve to rob the bank containing Papi’s cash, hoping to net $3 million and zing Papi for tax evasion. The complications arise when they find that Papi has $43 million, not just three. Through a series of double-crosses and other machinations, the two will end up working together. 

To add to the kookiness of the proceedings, the late, great Bill Paxton plays Earl, a man whose role in the story is kept vague for the first act. It’s eventually revealed that Earl is a rogue CIA agent, and that they also have a thumb on Papi’s scale.

2 Guns is a complex crime comedy that no one remembers

Throughout “2 Guns,” more and more secrets are revealed, and Earl is eventually exposed as the bad guy, not Papi. Earl’s hit squad is led by a guy named Quince, played by James Marsden. “2 Guns” also stars Paula Patton as a DEA special agent who is having an affair with Bobby Beans, and Fred Ward as a Navy guy who also gives Quince orders. Robert John Burke plays Bobby Beans’ boss at the DEA, and some fans may know him as t not Peter Weller from “RoboCop 3,” Mickey from “Rescue Me,” Bart from “Gossip Girl,” or any number of other roles; he has had a very prolific career. 

Some might notice similarities between “2 Guns” and the 1974 Walter Matthau movie “Charlie Varrick,” which has a somewhat similar plot. Of course, with all the double crosses and “agents undercover” rigmarole, it resembles a lot of movies. The original “2 Guns” comic likely drew inspiration from many hard-boiled 1970s cop-and-crime movies. Director Baltasar Kormákur merely brought a swift pace, some baffling plotting, and a lot of great actors into the fold. Kormákur had previously made the celebrated romantic comedy film “101 Reykjavík” in 2001, and previously worked with Mark Wahlberg on the 2012 film “Contraband.” His next film, “The Big Fix,” will also feature Wahlberg. The director frequently drifts back and forth between Hollywood and his native Iceland and churns out many semi-memorable thrillers like “Beast” and “Apex.” 

Back in 2013, it was reported that the producer of “2 Guns,” Randall Emmett, was so hopeful about the movie that he intended to make “3 Guns.” That film, however, was never made. “2 Guns” cost $61 million to make, but earned a respectable $131 million worldwide.

What did critics think of 2 Guns?

As might be predicted for a largely undiscussed mid-’10s crime flick, critics were merely warm on “2 Guns.” It has a 64% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 87 reviews, with most critics agreeing that it’s “eh, fine, I guess.” Anthony Quinn, writing for the Independent, compared “2 Guns” unfavorably to some of the sleazy crime movies of the 1980s, what with its “mismatched cops who hate each other” dynamics. “2 Guns, 2 Stars, 0 laughs,” he wrote. The 2 stars could be a mutual allusion to the lead actors and the critic’s rating. 

Odie Henderson, meanwhile, writing for RogerEbert.com, gave the film three stars (out of four), amused by its absurd dialogue and whimsical tone. More than anything, he loved the film’s tendency to repeat its own central figure for the amount of cash, which is 43.125 million. All the characters, he noticed, repeated that figure multiple times. “Bill Paxton has the most fun with it,” Henderson wrote, “his slow, staccato mentions sound like a Hemingway sentence read aloud.” The critic continued: 

“If you remember nothing else about ‘2 Guns,’ you’ll remember the exact amount that gets most of its cast killed. The money appears onscreen as an enormous, gasp-inducing pile of cash. Director Baltasar Kormákur and cinematographer Oliver Wood always shoot it from above, usually with someone in frame as a visual counterpoint. It would take 43.125 million rap videos set in strip clubs to match the fetishistic glee with which this money is presented, especially in the film’s climax.” 

I did see “2 Guns” back in 2013, and I only vaguely recall it being a little scuzzy, kind of amusing, and largely unremarkable, apart from its impressive cast.