Triple Frontier

Directed by J.C. Chandor, Triple Frontier follows a group of former special-forces soldiers, including Ben Affleck’s Tom Davis, Oscar Isaac’s Santiago Garcia, and Pedro Pascal’s Francisco Morales, as they conspire to take down a South American drug lord and steal all his cash. Filmmaker Chandor, armed with his and Mark Boal’s screenplay, delivers a watchable yet frustratingly erratic endeavor that’s never as exciting or gripping as one might’ve anticipated, which is a shame, certainly, given that Chandor has suffused the proceedings with a whole host of agreeable, engaging attributes and elements – including (and especially) a series of commanding performances that go a long way towards compensating for the narrative’s less-than-enthralling stretches. And although the picture boasts several larger-than-life action sequences (eg the soldiers’ initial assault on said drug lord’s fortified compound), Triple Frontier progresses into a hit-and-miss midsection and second half that remains curiously unable to generate the thrills for which Chandor is so obviously striving – with the lackluster vibe, coupled with a palpably overlong running time, resulting in a far-from-spellbinding climax that is, in the end, indicative of the film’s disappointingly half-baked sensibilities.

**1/2 out of ****