The Gunman shows Sean Penn occupying a set of skills previously used by Liam Neeson in the Taken film series. He’s a professional assassin called Martin Terrier who tries to retire but his employers aren’t happy about this and go to extreme lengths to get him to fulfill one last mission that apparently only he can do. In the trailer this plot is very much shown for all to see. It’s very flashy, there’s a lot of action that looks pretty well choreographed but behind the growly male presence and violence, there’s not a lot here on offer that can bring something unique to the likes of Taken which may be down to the fact that they are made by the same people. It is a film that has a narrow target audience of men who are into action films, possibly because they want to be like the protagonists they watch. Maybe the film will turn out to have more substance but as far as the trailer goes there is a distinct feeling of deja vu.
One thing that can definitely be said about Mr Terrier is this trailer: he has more than a bit of melon collie about him (cue irritated sighs from the readers.)