Boon (2022)

Boon is the kind of lean, hard-edged thriller that knows exactly what it is: a redemption story told through clenched teeth, quiet stares, and sudden bursts of violence. Neal McDonough brings a bruised decency to Nick Boon, a man trying to outrun his past in the gray, rain-soaked Pacific Northwest, and the film lets tension accumulate the way storm clouds do—slowly, then all at once. It may follow familiar genre tracks, but it’s staged with enough grit and momentum to keep you hooked, building to a final shootout that’s big, well-shot, and satisfyingly cathartic. Fair warning: the language is relentless and the violence is genuinely bloody, so it’s best for viewers who like their action thrillers tough and unsentimental.

Boon is clearly aiming for a lean, old-school redemption thriller: a hardened killer tries to do one good thing in a quiet town and ends up wading back into violence. Neal McDonough brings stern, stoic credibility and there are a few scraps that land, but the movie feels like it’s hitting familiar beats on autopilot, with pacing that drags and character work that never deepens beyond the basics. You can see the plot gears turning well before they turn, and the ending plays out exactly how you expect, without much of a payoff. If you’re here for a simple vigilante-style action programmer and can tolerate very bloody violence and heavy profanity, it’ll pass the time; if you want a genuinely tense mystery or fresh crime drama, this probably isn’t it.