22 Bullets review

A bunch of clichés does not an enjoyable gangster movie make...

Why you can trust 12DOVE Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

Like all self-respecting gangsters, Marseilles-based Charly Matteï (Jean Reno) has only one weakness – his family.

You’ll gather this from the Werther’s Original-style opening to this Gallic thriller, in which an adorable blonde child stares lovingly into granny’s wrinkled eyes.

Alas, Matteï’s idyllic retirement is disrupted by a flurry of bullets that leave him for dead. Only he doesn’t die, he goes on a rampage instead.

Richard Berry directs with slick proficiency and Reno is good at grabbing moments of whimsy (“I had a dog once. He was an alcoholic”), but neither can sew together the patchwork of gangster-flick clichés posing as a script.

Without a compelling plot to hold our attention, this only amounts to an impressively bloody bullet-a-thon: 22 seems a very conservative estimate…

Latest in Biography Movies
The Wolf of Wall Street
The 32 greatest Leonardo DiCaprio movies
Billy Zane as Marlon Brando in Waltzing with Brando
Upcoming Marlon Brando biopic gets its first look and fans cannot get over how uncanny Billy Zane looks: "I honestly thought this was Brando"
Keke Palmer, Daniel Kaluuya, and Brandon Perea in Nope
Don't call Jordan Peele the best horror director - he'll tell you it's John Carpenter
James Cameron announces Avatar 2 has finished filming, Avatar 3 "95% done"
The Avatar sequels have a reported budget of $1 billion
New Avatar 2 set photos show James Cameron filming with underwater technology
Latest in Reviews
Lenovo Legion Go S with FlyKnight gameplay on screen featuring player character holding bow and arrow with enemy ant in backdrop.
Lenovo Legion Go S Windows 11 review: “my heart aches for this mixed up handheld”
Talisman 5th Edition game components
Talisman 5th Edition review: "The characterful imperfections of the original game remain clear to see "
WWE 2K25
WWE 2K25 review: "A colossal package even if you never go anywhere near Virtual Currency"
Altered: Trial by Frost booster box and packs on a playmat
Altered: Trial by Frost review - "Satisfying enough to offer highly varied gameplay"
Three SteelSeries QcK Performance mouse pads on a wooden desk
I didn't expect to prefer a coarser mouse pad, but SteelSeries' new QcK Performance range has changed my mind
Boro and Alta sit on a bench together in Wanderstop
Wanderstop review: "Exalting the transformative power of tea"