Reckless

You know how it goes. A robbery is carefully planned, but not everybody is in on the same plan. One guy gets set up. During his five years in prison, he keeps his head down and stays out of trouble, but builds up his body and learns how to fight. Then when he gets out, he goes looking for revenge.

That, at any rate, is how people will tell you it works. It’s what everyone believes when they hear that Devon (Scott Adkins) is back out and that a former underworld contect of his is dead. Reality is a little different. Armed robberies aside, Devon is quite a sweet-natured guy, even a little naive. It didn’t occur to him to seek revenge – he’d assumed he’d been a victim of bad luck, and that he could just find his old mates and they’d have his share of the money waiting for him. Then he found one of them in the process of being murdered by a young woman trying to fend off a sexual assault. Now he’s back on the run, still after his money, but also concerned with survival and trying to figure out what’s going on – with the woman, who doesn’t trust the police, tagging along.

This is a bit of a departure for Adkins, whose work is usual centred on the physical these days, though he played more conventional roles early in his career. The sharp sense of timing essential to onscreen martial arts is equally well suited to comedy, and in casting Nicole Deon alongside him, director Elliott Montello has really struck gold. The two have a natural rapport which turns what could have been played as a routine thriller into a lively buddy comedy. Romance is wisely left out of the equation – there are little hints that it might develop in the future, but here the focus is on their developing friendship and Devon’s efforts to keep Deon’s character, Kimber, from getting hurt. This doesn’t mean that she’s shut out of the action scenes, however, and she’s certainly not passive.

A scene in which Devon visits the woman he was with before his arrest gives Adkins a rare chance to properly display his acting chops, and delivers a poignant moment in the midst of the mayhem. Elsewhere, the grim nature of Devon’s predicament is alleviated by a playful approach to the action, which is violent enough to satisfy fans but tempered when it comes to onscreen gore. Some of the villains are cartoonish in style. As the boss of the gang behind it all (clear early on, so not a spoiler), Vinny Jones has no fighting to do, but provides a suitably threatening presence, he doesn’t quite convince as a member of the House of Lords, but Sarina Taylor, channelling Joan Collins to add a sly note of camp, is quite believable as the wife of one.

Throughout the story, Devon keeps bumping into people who assume that he was raped in prison. This is fairly well handled and not sensationalised, with Adkins avoiding playing into the insinuation that this might make his character gay or less of a man; it feels like a successful take-down of a problematic genre trope. A mishandled note at the very end lets this good work down, however. one can see why it was included, but it’s a naive choice, and will knock many viewers right out of the cheery mood the film works hard to create.

Also out of place, though less problematically so, are brief music video-style clips inserted here and there between scenes, which serve no discernible purpose beyond being a clumsy way of establishing a vibe. They come across like padding aimed at getting the film to a particular length, or like an inexperienced editor’s attempt to link scenes in the absence of a proper transition, though there’s nothing elsewhere to call the editor’s skill into question.

These issues aside, there’s lots to enjoy here. Deon is a treat in her first major role. Adkins has hinted that he’s open to a sequel, and their entertaining partnership suggests that there’s room for a lot more fun to be had.

Reviewed on: 29 May 2026