Peppermint~The Movie Review
Hi movie lovers, I’m gonna be giving a review on a movie I watched a while back. And as you might have guessed, Yes, I’ve watched it countless times.
Honestly, I’ve always wanted to do a review on this movie but maybe I’m not the only one who loves to Gatekeep movies you absolutely love and are not ready to share with the rest of the world yet.
I’m honestly not going to give you a teaser but a full narrative, and it’s left for you to go see the movie.
The movie I’ll be giving a review on is Titled: Peppermint. I really don’t know why it’s got such a name cos I think a more emotional title should be ascribed to this movie.
Now let’s get right into it. Get your tissue box ready guys. Oh just joking. You might not really need it until you get into the movie though.
PLOT
Riley North is a regular mom in Los Angeles who is living a humble life with her husband Chris and their loving daughter Carly. They are however, struggling financially, but that doesn’t dwindle their love for each other any bit.
One fateful day at his store, Chris gets offered a shady opportunity to be the getaway driver for a drug cartel job. He obviously says no, after considering the repercussion on his family, but only considering it puts him on the cartel’s radar.
The cartel sends a hit squad to go after Chris and right in front of Riley, her husband and daughter are shot dead during an outing to celebrate Carly’s birthday. Riley is shot too but she survives.
You would however think that justice would prevail, but that is the opposite. The whole system is rigged. It was a case of corrupt cops and a bribed judge who dismissed the case as that of a delusional woman. The culprits walk free without any trial and obviously no prison. Riley breaks down mentally and emotionally. And then on the way to a psychiatric home which the judge prescribes for her, she disappears.
Five years later, Riley returns but she is not the same person who left. She has undergone training. She now seemed dangerous and so focused like someone who has an aim and must fulfill it.
She enters into vigilante mode and one by one, she takes down all the gang members who killed her family. She targets the whole cartel including the drug labs, the corrupt cops, the cartel boss Diego Garcia himself and she dismantles their entire operation in pieces, leaving no crumbs.
Trust the media to get their hands on juicy news. Some see her as a hero while some say she is a criminal that must be brought down. This includes the cops themselves. Some root for her inwardly while some try to do everything possible to bring her down.
Unfortunately, an innocent cop loses her life in the process of trying to get to the bottom of things.
Eventually, the authorities catch up with her, and she is arrested, but at this point, people start seeing her as a hero and not a killer. She is the symbol of a mother who would do anything to avenge the unjust death of her family; taking Justice into her hands when no one could.
She however got out when a detective who understands her gave her a way of escape and she becomes a legend.
MY REVIEW
Peppermint is more than just an action movie. It tells the story of how a mother did all she could to avenge the killing of her loving family when the Justice system failed her.
Honestly, this is the first movie by Jennifer Garner that portrays the emotional side of a grieving mother. She delivers a powerful performance as Riley North, a woman who transforms from a suburban mom to a relentless vigilante, not out of desire, but because every system meant to protect her collapsed under the weight of corruption.
My highlight of this movie is its unapologetic portrayal of how corrupt our institutions are and how much they have failed us. After witnessing the brutal murder of her husband and daughter, Riley does what anyone would do by turning to the law. But the legal system, filled with dirty and compromised judges, and a cartel that operates with all sense of impunity, lets her down in the most devastating way possible. The killers walk free, and Riley is left voiceless in a courtroom designed to protect power and not people.
Now don’t get it twisted, this movie actually contextualizes violence and doesn’t glorify it.
The fact that Riley transforms into a fighter is a straightforward response to a justice system that betrayed her.
Even though she used extreme methods, the movie actually forced me to ask myself, “what would I do when the people who are supposed to help me are working with the ones who hurt me? Leave them to fate?”
I would honestly say that the movie is not just a revenge story, It’s much more a story about accountability, courage, and the terrifying cost of injustice in our system.
I would gladly rate this movie a 10/10 because it’s worth it.
All images are screenshots from my phone
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