'The Equalizer 3' review: Gorgeous Italian scenery makes violence go down easy

Denzel Washington's Equalizer character goes on a lovely Italian sojourn in "The Equalizer 3," a solid action vehicle which, vicious violence aside, could double as a tourism promo for the Amalfi Coast.

Yes, there is some Equalizing to be done, against a ruthless group of Italian mobsters who are importing drugs from Syria and terrorizing the locals. But elsewhere, Washington's Robert McCall drinks tea in cozy, charming outdoor cafes, learns his way around local fish markets, climbs tight, winding staircases in the city square and looks to be having the time of his life. No wonder he's ready to kill whomever and whatever disrupts his hard-earned tranquility.

"The Equalizer 3" follows the "Equalizer" series' two previous entries, from 2014 and 2018, which weren't particularly notable in either Washington's or director Antonie Fuqua's filmography. (This marks the "Training Day" pair's fifth big screen collaboration.) It's based on the '80s TV series about vigilante justice, and all you really need to know about Washington's character is violence is his primary language, and he speaks it very fluently.

This chapter, supposedly the series' final entry, opens with McCall in a wine cellar in Sicily, where two toughs are holding him hostage until their boss arrives. It's not long before McCall has made mincemeat of all three foes, but on his way out he catches a bullet from a young assailant, a rare instance of him not correctly clocking a situation.

He tries fleeing but doesn't get far, and he's rescued by a doctor who takes him back to his seaside Italian village and allows him to recuperate. The script is in no particular hurry to get McCall back in the killing business, and it takes its time as he slowly gets on his feet and ingratiates himself with the townspeople and their culture. It's a wise investment, it lets both the film and McCall breathe, and the location shooting — no green screens here — makes for lovely scenery to bask in for awhile.

McCall, observant of the local gang's playbook, puts in a call to CIA analyst Emma Collins, played by Dakota Fanning, who starred with Washington nearly 20 years ago in Tony Scott's "Man on Fire." The duo has a dazzling reunion scene where they're feeling one another out and dancing around what they know about each other, neither willing to give up too much ground to the other. They form a team to take down the bad guy organization at both the micro and macro level.

Eventually the bloodletting commences, but McCall elevates his violence by making it his personal business; he's the type to stab someone, watch them fall to the ground, and look them in the eye the entire time. "The Equalizer 3" — let's go ahead and call it "The Threequalizer" — is easily the best entry in the series, and Washington's best work in the action space in more than a decade. Consider it a relaxing vacation with a side order of violence.

'The Equalizer 3'

GRADE: B

Rated R: strong bloody violence and some language

Running time: 103 minutes

In theaters

agraham@detroitnews.com