It’s hard to think of two movie stars whose career trajectories are quite as different than that of Kevin Costner and Ryan Reynolds. Costner managed to take the industry by storm in the late 1980s and early 1990s with sincere and earnest performances. Films like Dances With Wolves, Field of Dreams, The Untouchables, and Bull Durham hit with audiences because Costner was not afraid to portray completely heroic characters that were almost saccharine at points. Comparatively, Reynolds has made it a habit of being as snarky as possible throughout every film’s production, and even into the marketing process. At times, it feels like his personality is indistinguishable from the Wade Wilson character he portrays in the Deadpool films. Seeing two stars that represent such different generations of cinema uniting was certainly going to be an event, but sadly, the 2016 action film Criminal has managed to almost completely evaporate from the collective memory of moviegoers everywhere. Criminal isn’t a good film, but its genuine intensity makes it worth watching as a guilty pleasure.

Criminal opens with a disturbing action sequence in which the CIA agent Bill Pope (Reynolds) is taken down and killed by a group of anarchists while on a mission in Europe, leaving his wife Jill (Gal Gadot) and child Emma (Lara Decaro) completely heartbroken. In order to complete Pope’s mission, the CIA supervisor Quaker Wells (Gary Oldman) orders the scientist Dr. Micah Franks (Tommy Lee Jones) to perform an experimental procedure in which Bill’s memories are inserted into the mind of a sociopath prisoner. That prisoner ends up being the lifelong inmate Jerico Stewart (Costner), whose life of crimes have given him no possible means of redemption. Criminal may be very silly, but it makes the type of strange tonal choices that are virtually unseen in today’s blockbusters.

‘Criminal’ Has a Genuinely Dark and Upsetting Plot

Criminal makes the bold creative choice to completely distinguish Bill and Jerico as characters, as it does not suggest that the two are similar in the slightest. Bill was a devoted spy who genuinely believed in the importance of his mission, even if the CIA was capable of taking some shady actions in order to root out the international conspiracy. Reynolds is so effortlessly charismatic in the opening scenes that his shocking demise hits even harder. Although, initially the nature of the procedure suggested that Jerico would begin to adopt some of Bill’s qualities, it becomes clear that he is simply haunted by memories of a family and life he doesn’t know. It’s here where Criminal reveals the exploitative aspect of espionage; the CIA and Wells don’t really care about Bill as a person, as he is only important to them because of the information that he possesses.

Criminal goes out of its way to cast Costner against type, as Jerico has none of the inherent charisma that made Bull Durham or Elliot Ness such iconic heroes. Jerico has spent so many years behind bars that he is virtually deprived of any semblance of humanity. He is essentially a lurking beast who is only unleashed when the CIA needs to take out their most critical enemies. Costner gives one of his more underrated performances, as Jerico’s gradual understanding of Bill’s life ends up making the story more tragic. Rather than attempting to serve as a replacement for Bill’s wife and child, Jerico is given another reminder that he has never enjoyed the freedoms of compassion. Bill’s memories and dreams continue to haunt him because he knows that the possibility of attaining the same thing has all but disappeared from his life.

‘Criminal’ Is a Throwback to B-Movies

Criminal is an absolutely intense and ruthless action film that feels closer in tone to the exploitation and revenge films made by Cannon in the 1970s and 1980s than most of the popular action movies made today. Reynolds’ casting would seemingly suggest that there is some sort of snarkiness involved, but Criminal is almost completely self-serious in a manner that is quite refreshing. While, obviously, the scientific mechanics involved in explaining Bill’s connection to Jerico are completely ridiculous, the film is able to avoid any serious discussion about logic because the pacing is so relentless. There’s not a lot of lore involved in setting up this version of the CIA and the war on terror because it is so close to reality; as a result, Criminal is able to cut out the fat and keep the audience on their toes with a nearly non-stop barrage of shootouts and fight scenes.