Not Your Everyday Mechanic

Alfred Hitchcock once said “if it’s a good movie, the sound could go off and the audience would still have a perfectly clear idea of what was going on”. A perfect example of this is the first sixteen minutes of the 1972 action film The Mechanic.

Directed by Michael Winner and starring Charles Bronson (the pair, who had made one film previously, would go on to make a total of six together), the plot follows an aging hit-man in Los Angeles. The opening sixteen minutes is a masterclass in patience, restraint and telling a visual story, without any dialogue. We watch as the man, named Arthur Bishop, intricately plans his next kill. No dialogue is needed to make this an effective scene, as it captures a tense atmosphere and places us in the mind set of our lead, as we now know that he has a deft touch at killing and is not to be messed with. It is a bold choice to open a movie and it is all the richer for it.

After completing another hit for The Organization – the secretive, underworld group that provides Bishop with his missions, the assassin takes Steve McKenna (Jan-Michael Vincent), the son of one of his deadly acquaintances, under his wing – training him in the art of the kill (and teaching him that everyone has a weakness). They have a complicated relationship, extremely competitive to say the least, plus there is quite a bit of mentor/protégé, as well as a father and son vibe.

After a less than clean first entry into the deadly game, The Organization is more than a little wary of Bishop’s choice – especially since he did not run it by them to begin with. Providing him with another job, this one needs to be done quick (and will help quell the fears of The Organization). The unusual team heads to Naples, Italy to eliminate their next hit. Will the pair be able to fell their target, putting them back in The Organization’s good graces, or will they fail to complete the challenging task?

A movie not without its flaws, The Mechanic is still an entertaining action film. The murderous set pieces are diverse and vivid; they feel more than realistic. They range from the slower paced opening hit, to high octane motorcycle chases and underwater escapades. It is visually engaging, though falls short in the realm of dialogue and performances. Although Bronson is cool as the hit-man, always swishing his heavy bangs and putting them in their place, the discourses feel a bit wooden. I must also mention that Jill Ireland (who was married to Bronson and worked with him on sixteen productions) has an interesting role in which she plays a prostitute who pretends to be in love with Bronson’s Bishop. Also keep your eyes open for some striking movie posters that adorn her living room wall.

Winner’s The Mechanic is an engaging enough action flick that has some standout moments. Though it dips a bit in the middle, the twists that come two thirds of the way through add fuel to the fire, bringing an unexpected tension to the story which then leads to a fabulous ending. So, fix to see The Mechanic, it is an explosive, noteworthy motion picture that has quite the endgame.