A great Greek tragedy

Rating: 9/10 (4 March 2006)

This is one of the best movies i've ever seen...
Denzel Washington lives the role - a broken, used-up former special ops man, who lost his will and reason to live. Dakota Fanning goes beyond her terminal cuteness to deliver a very convincing performance. Christopher Walken remains one of the best - this man deserves a lifetime award.
The direction is very NYPD Blue-style. Very nervous, broken in bits and extremely effective. The writing is top-notch, with good one liners peppered regularly, the best one being "Forgiveness is between God and them - i'm just there to set-up the meeting".
The religious undertone brings out the tragic side of the story. It made me want to read the bible...
I'm a bit disturbed by the portrayal of the Mexican society. Is it really this bad? One a more technical note, how did the filmmakers secure Mexican authorities' collaboration when the movie displays their police as a HUGE sea of corruption? Please listen to the second audio comments track on the DVD, Dakota Fanning is adorable and the chit-chat with the writers is real cute.
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER!! Overall, this movie is a Greek tragedy - sacrificing one's life to become the angel of extermination, delivering punishment to the bad guys and saving the day at the end - while paying the utmost price.