The Debt Collector

 OK. it's really bothering me now. I've watched this movie three times, and I still can't work it out; Who is The Debt Collector?

 Is it French (Scott Adkins)? Could be - he's our point of view character, a very British martial arts instructor and independent gym proprietor whom we meet as he greets a bunch of predatory douchebag rivals who are trying to run him out of his dojo. He deals with them in the best possible way: by offering to take them all on before he'll consider their offer. "Like in a martial arts movie" "Yeah, that's right, mate, like a fucking martial arts movie."

 He handily kicks their collective asses, but that doesn't solve the fact that the gym is struggling financially. To try and make ends meet, he convinces an friend and student (Michael Paré!) to give him a job as a debt collector. His friend doubts he's a good fit for it, and for good reason: French clearly lacks the moral flexibility the gig requires. But after some wheedling, and meeting the collections boss, he steps into the titular role. Or does he?

 Because therein lies the problem: On his first day, he's partnered up with another debt collector - Sue, an old, bleary-eyed and hungover veteran played by the great Louis Mandylor. At no point do they say "there can only be one!" and fight each other, nor does one recognize the other as the one and true Debt Collector. No crown or sash is ceremonially donned. It's maddening.

 The film follows them both as they do the rounds that first weekend. Sue's way of showing the new guy the ropes consists of dropping him into the deep end and hanging back to enjoy the fireworks; French, for his part, does relatively well - he's been established as a soldier as well as a mixed martial artist, so beating up a bunch of thugs is something he turns out to be surprisingly good at.

 Not that he enjoys it. This is a buddy comedy, after all, so the characters need to be at odds for a while before they warm up to each other. And the way it works here is that Sue basically takes the piss, always hanging back and letting French take on all punches; Meanwhile, French complains. He does come off as a little whiny, but what makes it funny is that all his moaning is justified.

 They're both great characters, and the actors have good chemistry together. Veteran VoD director Jesse V. Johnson is predictably good with the action, but more importantly for this movie his script (co-written with Stu Smalls, whom he'd worked with before on the excellent Accident Man) is funny, full of great lines and colour (and off-colour) detail. It's charming as hell, with a tone that remains breezy even as it gets into murkier waters.

 Because as everyone keeps warning French, debt collection's not for those with a conscience. And, to be fair, despite showing some scruples, he does get up to some pretty heinous shit over the course of the movie. While the film remains episodic, there aren't any major issues. But a plot eventually emerges (driven by a gangster played by Tony Todd) that will lead to places where he - and maybe even callous, burnt-out Sue - are not willing to go. Predictable, but satisfying.

 There are quite a few fights, and Mandylor gets to show off his boxing skills. But it's mostly Adkins's show, and he gets a real workout; The brawling is a little grittier than, say, Accident Man - it's way more grounded, and it feels like a few of the victories are very close -  but it still finds the time for someone to get thrown clear through a wall and quite a few comic beats. A climactic shootout, meanwhile, doesn't have much in the way of choreography or excitement, but it has an excellent use of squibs. Very juicy ones.

 One thing that cracked me up: there's this one guy who, when hit, makes a basketball-like sound on every impact. Cracks me up every time. Someone give the foley artist responsible a raise, please.

 Cinematographer Jonathan Hall captures the shittier corners of LA in all their dusty, sunny, neo-noirish glory, and the actors really elevate already good material; Adkins has never been better in the dramatic department, and Mandylor is a revelation: soulful, funny and with just the right mix of badass and vulnerability. In a just world, his part here would have made him huge. Johnson is a great director whose movies tend to look much better than their budget should allow, and this is no exception. There are even a few avant-garde like flourishes; They're slightly jarring, but after a few watches I now find the epilogue of sorts they lead to sweet and affecting. This is a really great fucking movie.

 French and Sue will return, improbably, in a very inessential sequel that nonetheless retains much of the charm. It doesn't answer who The Debt Collector is in this one. It's also nowhere near as good, but who'd refuse to spend more time in these guys' company?