Netflix’s latest action thriller, “Man on Fire” — based on A. J. Quinnell’s acclaimed 1980 novel and adapted to television by Kyle Killen — brings the infamous John Creasy to the small screen. Though the story was first adapted as a 1987 film with Scott Glenn in the leading role, most fans will recall Denzel Washington’s iconic portrayal in Tony Scott’s 2004 entry, where Washington starred alongside Dakota Fanning. Now with Killen at the helm, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is embodying the vengeful ex-CIA special operative who is out for blood. Focusing on the events of Quinnell’s second Creasy novel, “The Perfect Kill,” the Netflix show is solid with very capable performances, but it lacks the intrigue and heart that made its immediate predecessor a fan favorite.
The seven-episode first season begins in the past. It’s a gloomy day in Mexico City, where a calm, cool and collected John Creasy (Abdul-Mateen II) is fully in his zone. He’s running point for what should be a seamless operation. His team is in position to take down their target, and his superior, Henry Tappan (Scoot McNairy), is back at CIA headquarters ready to give a final confirmation. Tragically, before Creasy even begins to conceive of what’s happening, he and his entire team are ambushed. As he lies bleeding out on the ground, Creasy watches his colleagues get brutally executed.
Four years later, a disoriented, sweating Creasy is startled awake by a nightmare. He’s no longer the level-headed man that viewers were introduced to in Mexico City. Instead, he’s agitated, drunk and self-hating. Though he goes through the motions of his warehouse job, he’s quickly unraveling. Things come to a head when, following a drunken decision to drive his car into a barrier, he finds himself waking up in a hospital bed. Banged up and still laden with despair, he isn’t exactly thrilled to see his former superior officer, Paul Rayburn (Bobby Cannavale), looming over him. Still, with nothing left to lose, Creasy allows Rayburn to lure him to Rio de Janeiro for a job working counterterrorism for the Brazilian government.
Though Rayburn, his wife, two young sons and 16-year-old daughter Poe (Billie Boullet) welcome Creasy into their world, the houseguest is not exactly a cheerful presence. However, Creasy’s training and rage are activated after he is unexpectedly charged with getting Poe out of the country undetected. Still overcome with his own grief, Creasy must tuck his own demons away in an effort to care for a teenage girl whose life has suddenly been thrown into chaos. Plagued by extreme suspicion and shielding himself with emotional detachment, Creasy is forced to rely on Valeria Melo (Alice Braga), a single mother and driver deeply steeped in her own pain.
Though it’s been over twenty years since the Denzel Washington film was released, it’s only natural that audiences will compare this series against the earlier work. Though Abdul-Mateen II and Boullett are fantastic in their roles, there is no comparison to the bond that Washington and Fanning (who portrayed his 10-year-old charge, Lupita “Pita” Ramos) shared in the movie. Still, Creasy and Poe’s rapport is one of the highlights of the series, which has a solid but fairly predictable narrative. Moreover, as the plot pushes toward the season finale, it becomes increasingly over-elaborate, siphoning attention from the emotional beats that would have elevated “Man on Fire” above the standard fare of an action thriller.
Still, one of the most stunning aspects of the series is its depiction of Rio de Janeiro. Creasy and the Rayburns live in an affluent neighborhood surrounded by towering condo buildings. As the series continues, the audience is immersed in the favelas, the low-income communities tucked into the city’s hillsides, which overlook the glittering towers of the wealthiest residents. A callback to Fernando Meirelles’ 2002 film “City of God,” the show depicts the city’s varied energies in their totality.
With a powerhouse performance by Abdul-Mateen II as a broken man motivated solely by loyalty and vengeance, “Man on Fire” is good enough. The cast is sound, and the narrative is just as solid as any other in the genre. Yet, because the series never deviates from what is expected, it never rises to the level of being distinct or exceptional. However, for those just looking for a typical Netflix binge, the show works just fine.
“Man on Fire” is now streaming on Netflix.