Viewers have had their say on Jason Statham's 'Mutiny' — brace yourself

If you know one thing about Jason Statham by now, it’s that he’s made a career out of doling out righteous beatings on screen, usually while seeking revenge on whichever mobsters, mercenaries, or prehistoric sea creatures have crossed him this time. With his latest outing, Mutiny, the trend continues—no awards for guessing what you’re getting here. Statham as a wronged man, faces to punch, and the usual mix of hard stares and heavier punches.

Audience vs. Critics

This time round, Statham steps into the shoes of Cole Reed, a former cop and special forces bloke who gets stitched up for the murder of his own wealthy boss—a chap who also happened to be his mate and gets offed right in front of him. Reed tries to clear his name by sneaking onboard a cargo ship, only to find himself tangled in a global conspiracy. If that’s giving you déjà vu, you’re not imagining it; Statham could probably play this role in his sleep. But apparently, audiences aren’t tired of it in the slightest.

Mutiny isn’t here to subvert expectations or reinvent the wheel, but the crowd on Rotten Tomatoes is quite chuffed about it nonetheless. At last count, it’s sitting at 85% with an average rating of 4.4 stars, which for a mid-budget action flick is nothing to sneeze at. Here’s a taste of the responses: one punter stated that Statham is just 'great at these kinds of movies'. Another showered it with 'amazing non-stop action movie' praise, summarising their thoughts with 'Jason is that guy! Must watch!' Some are calling it 'classic Statham'. Predictable, yes, but that’s exactly what fans seem to want.

Mutiny currently holds an 85% audience score and a 4.4-star average on Rotten Tomatoes.

That said, not everyone’s instantly sold. A handful of viewers seem to have hit their limit, calling Mutiny 'a bit more on the mediocre side but still enjoyable regardless', and at least one person went so far as to say 'Even for a Jason Statham movie, this was bad.' That’s quite an achievement when you remember the depths some of those old sequels have reached.

The Statham Blueprint

• The Transporter series: Statham as a tough-nosed driver taking on human traffickers, drug cartels, anyone who’ll stand still long enough to get walloped.
• Crank films: Plays Chev Chelios, whose body gets tampered with in increasingly daft ways, requiring him to batter his way through waves of gangsters to stay alive.
• The Meg: Swapping cockney geezers for a prehistoric shark, Statham goes toe-to-fin with a megalodon. Not exactly Shakespeare, but you get the point.

In other words, the man’s got a formula and he’s not budging. It’s a brand that’s built for streaming, and by the looks of it, Mutiny is another smooth fit. Still, as always, critics are less likely to crack a smile. Julian Roman over at MovieWeb didn’t mince words, handing it three stars and calling the script 'predictable with scant character development', though he did concede the action was a cut above.

If warm reception from fans is anything to go by, we might not have seen the last of Reed. There’s already talk of a sequel bubbling away. Statham and co-star Annabelle Wallis are reportedly kicking around what are described as 'crazy ideas' for a follow-up. Given how eager the fanbase sounds at the minute, it’s hard to imagine the studio wouldn’t want another swing at it.