Mayhem! (2023)

Mayhem! grabs you by the collar with the kind of hard-earned, physical storytelling that makes action feel painful, personal, and urgent—less superhero spectacle, more bruises and consequences. Xavier Gens directs with a sure hand, letting the camera ride the momentum of each confrontation so the fights land with grounded clarity and a nasty, propulsive rhythm rather than shaky confusion. Set against the seductive calm of Thailand that slowly curdles into menace, it’s a lean revenge thriller that keeps tightening the screws until intensity becomes its own engine. If you prefer your action glossy or your crime stories morally tidy, this may be too raw and relentless—but if you want a vengeance tale that hits like a well-thrown punch, it’s absolutely worth stepping into the ring.

Mayhem! wants to be a gritty, sun-scorched revenge thriller about a man who tries to go straight, gets dragged back into hell, and then snaps. The problem is it takes its time getting to the “mayhem,” and the characters often feel like placeholders for plot beats rather than people you can truly invest in, which makes the tragedy-and-vengeance turn hit softer than it should. The script also clutters a pretty straightforward premise with drama that doesn’t always feel earned, so the tension can sag instead of tighten. If you’re here for Xavier Gens-style brutality and a lean, hard-hitting rampage, you may find yourself impatient—but if you can tolerate a slow build for a few solid action bursts and a sweaty Thailand backdrop, there’s still some pulpy genre value.