CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Bergorks If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Curt Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

Tweekums Arthur Bishop is a hit-man who works with care; every detail is planned out and when he strikes the target will certainly be killed but it won't be identified as a murder. After observing one of his hits we see he go to see his boss, a man he has known all his life and clearly considers a friend. He is asks to look into a problem. Shortly afterwards he is given his next target; his boss! They may be friends but that doesn't stop him doing his job. After the funeral Steve, the man's son, asks for a lift home; they get talking and over a series of meetings Steve gets to know what Bishop does and eventually asks if he can work with him. He accepts and they start training; their first hit together is successful but ends up messier than Bishop's employers would have liked… they are also displeased that he took on an apprentice without asking their permission. Bishop is given another job, this time in Italy… there is a complication though; he has learnt that Steve has been given his own job… to kill Bishop!This is a solid thriller that doesn't rush things; not a word is spoken in the first ten minutes during which time we see Bishop setting up a hit in intricate detail. This ends in explosive style. There are more moments of action as Bishop and Steve engage in more jobs; this is especially true of the job on Italy which features shootings, an impressive chase along a winding coast road and more explosions. There are some disturbing moments; most notably when it looks as if Steve and Bishop will just look on as the former's girlfriend attempts suicide. The twist of having Steve targeting Bishop wasn't a huge surprise but once we, and Bishop, knew about it the tension was raised nicely. They must work together one is constantly wondering when Steve will turn on his mentor. Michael Winner directs in a no-nonsense manner and is willing to go long periods without dialogue. Charles Bronson does a fine job as the very precise Bishop and Jan-Michael Vincent contrasts nicely as Steve; a man who seems to enjoy his work. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of the genre.

morrison-dylan-fan Despite a family friend being a big fan of their work,I've never had the chance to catch a glimpse of Michael Winner/Charles Bronson's collaborations.Checking updates on Netflix UK,I found out that one of their team-ups was going to be taken off the site in a few days,which led to me fixing things up with the mechanic.The plot:Cutting out any connection to a social or personal life, Arthur Bishop trains himself to be a mechanic/hit-man for a group which demands the very best from their assassins. Successfully following an order to kill a member of the group,Bishop attends the funeral of his victim. During the funeral,Bishop crosses paths with the victims son Steve McKenna. Finding McKenna to have a detachment to life that matches his,Bishop begins to think that McKenna has the tools to be a fellow mechanic.View on the film:For someone who always sounded like the life of the party in interviews,director Michael Winner displays an unexpected ear for silence,with Winner breaking Bishop's merciless Film Noir loner veins with extended sequences featuring no dialogue,which strike at the cold, soulless emotion Bishop feels towards his job. Whilst screenwriter Lewis John Carlino complained over the hard-nosed script being softened,Winner keeps the Noir chill at the frozen heart of Bishop, shining in stylish scatter-gun tracking shots keeping track of the mechanical nature of Bishop's kills.Bringing an outsider in to join Bishop and sending them both to Italy,Winner pushes the Noir shoulder aside for a dash in Italian Crime,that despite bringing some frantic chase moments in,does leave to a pause in looking at the empty reflection of Bishop. Opening Bishop's bag of tools for the final,Winner whips the title back to the dour Noir soul of Bishop,in a richly cynical ending that delivers a burning parting shot from Bishop. Stuck with a smug Jan- Michael Vincent as Steve McKenna, Bronson cuts a note of pure Noir class as Bishop. Slithering in the shadows of his victims, Bronson brilliantly expresses in silence the coldness Bishop feels towards each murder,as Bishop sets his target on another mechanical kill.

videorama-759-859391 Of course, we all remember that explosive end to this film about an aging hit-man, who makes one dire mistake, by taking on a new young protégé, which he shouldn't of. Was it out of loneliness, or has this guy, found out there's no meaning to his life anymore? His pad is unbelievable, it almost made me think of taking this career path. Made just before Death Wish, cragged faced Bronson, does what he does best. The first fifteen minutes, that has Bronson, setting up one hell of a hit, sniper rifle and all, was so impressive, where rigging that guy's apartment, tampering with the gas stove whatever, you really wondered how the hit was gonna go down. In contrast, with this part of the film, being so wowing, it makes the rest of the film look ordinary, amongst some thrilling bits, involving the other hits. Jan Michael Vincent, doesn't give his role enough clout, as the all American nice guy, a hounding and avid learner, where his intentions were clear from the start, such a predictability. The motorcycle chase was the worse one in history, as well as boring and dull, I couldn't wait for it to be over. The young girl suicide scene was absolutely pointless and stupid, where Bronson's and Vincent's indifference to it, made them at that moment, almost unlikeable. Bronson was strong in this, a mixture of good and bad, where his acting partner didn't do him justice, and really two scenes with Jill Ireland, his girl here, were almost forgettable. What The Mechanic serves to do as a film in simplistic plot, is show you shallow the life of a hit-man can be, and what attitudes you have to adapt to, and not let personal issues get in the way. But also it makes you wonder, is it time to get out of this life when the goings good. It's a choice that worries us, concerning Bronson's character. Near the end, the last turning point was exciting to see, who was gonna be gotten to first, where I guess in one sick sense, they both came out even. I have a way good feeling the remake is better and of course, more action packed and exciting, though. It just would of been great if the rest of the movie kept up it's end of bargain, to it's explosive starting, where mostly the rest of the film, sad to say, is just one of ordinary. The "Keeping up the end of the bargain" factor, is a failing that can movies really suck. Even back in 1972.

Thorsten-Krings Michael Winner is not very popular these days. Some see him as a mediocre film maker. I would disagree with that: Winner has made some very good films and some which are not memorable so I would rank him with Val Guest as a very talented director who also works as a craftsman. The Mechanic is a good example of Winner at his best. He tells the story of a lone hit-man who seems to have no feelings at all and operates detached from the outside world almost like a Samurai. However, below that surface we see a very lonely man who pays a hooker to write him love letters and who suffers from depression and anxiety. He is a man of contradictions, a cultivated lover of classical music and fine wine and also ruthless killer. My only misgiving about the film is that I just don't see that degree of being torn between two extremes in Bronson's performance. I wonder what an actor like Clint Eastwood would have made of that role. Anyway, this leads to him adopting a seemingly kindred spirit as an apprentice to murder. Ironically, he is the son of his last victim. That is seen as breaking the rules by the organisation he seemingly freelances for and he realizes that he is not as independent as he thought he was. So both men are hunted and eventually set against each other. Bronson loses but the motive is not revenge, simply the lust to kill. The film then ends with a very twisted ending that makes you wonder whether Bronson's character really committed suicide through a third person. The story is originally and well paced with some spectacular action scenes. So all in all the film is both intelligent as well as full of suspense. Very, very watchable!