Movie Review: Diablo~Revenge, Redemption, and Violence in Colombia

Can you be honest with me? “ Have you ever made a promise worth dieing for?”

If you like gangster movies, then this is a banger for you. Honestly, it started with a meme, a clip of Scott Adkins trading brutal blows with Marko Zaror in the streets of Colombia. My overworked brain said, Just before bed. One fight scene. But that one scene hooked me instantly. I hunted down the film streaming June 13 on Prime Video and VOD and braced myself for the kind of visceral action only these two can deliver.

When I first saw the thriller I was like DAMN!! 😱 It gave me the energy I wanted. Diablo looked perfect. Of course I won't live the part that it's a Colombia movie and I liked their accent.

The movie Diablo begins with Kris Chaney (Scott Adkins) leaving prison and entering the sweaty streets of Bogot, Colombia. He is not seeking retribution, he is seeking to honor an oath: to retrieve Elisa (Alana De La Rossa), the daughter of a famous gangster and protect her.

But the news travels quickly. Her father, Vicente (Lucho Velasquez) smokes a joint with both of them-and releases the psychopathic killer El Corvo (Marko Zaror) to track Kris down

That basic idea of a man defending a woman against a gangster and an assassin gives birth to an endless beat of action and drama .

I have watched numerous martial arts movies. But I have seldom felt each stroke in my heart. This is pure, unmixed and down to earth action. There is no shaky cam. No indefinite bullet-time. Fist, foot, and bodies banging against walls.

Critics described it as a nostalgic action film, a master course in martial arts action filmmaking.

And it really is. Adkins and Zaror prepared to fight each other on the screen-every movement seems natural, cruel and wonderfully cruel.

One of the highlights? The battle of the warehouse. Up close and personal violence, blasting shots, and no idle fists. It is gut-wrenching-and memorable.

This is not a fight between two muscle bound men. Kris Chaney is grizzled, haunted-Adkins displays the burden of his history in every crooked face.

He does not have superhero strength, he is resolved and weary, and that counts.

On the other side, Elisa does not act like a damsel in distress. She battles, yells, defends herself--in times even fights with Kris. The twist that the movie takes is the shift in perspective that occurs between the victim of a kidnapping and an active participant in it.

Then there is El Corvo--a cold almost unstoppable force. Zaror becomes frightening. An assassin with a smile that freezes your heart and metal hands. It is no wonder that critics labeled him as a “chilling presence” and a “specter of death”.

Diablo is more than just violence. It is the theme of fulfilling one of those promises in a world where you can not do it.

He is motivated by Kris who promises Elisa mother. In spite of fear, fatigue and peril he continues going-one step at a time

Their increasing confidence is silent and strong. Fearful moments, hushed grins, cooperative defiance- they no longer become kidnapper and victim. They turn into co-survivors.

The emotional appeal made a violent action movie more than about bullets and blood.

My heart was beating frantically after the roll of the credits and with a sad lump in the throat.

Diablo made me think:

What is the promise that is worth dying? Kris is not out to seek glory. He is motivated by love and sorrow. This was real.

Is brutality justifiable? I was amazed at how desperation changes individuals by watching the relentless evil of El Corvo.

What is the relationship between trust and violence? The friendship between Kris and Elisa develops in the battlefield, literally.

The movie does not provide simple solutions. However, I left myself with questions later.

Diablo is not the game to watch in case you are interested in fancy special effects or feel-good humor. This is clever, bitter, passionate motion- a movie that is physically and psychologically painful.

I was here to see fights. However, I remained with the story.
I remained because of the promise, the sorrow, the humaneness.

Scott Adkins and Marko Zaror do not only fight, they also act. They add life to their punches. They make you experience each hit and each heartbreak.

Diablo is not a run of the mill bullet-filled thriller. It is a tireless ode of persistence, doing and what it is to cling to what is important to you, even when the gates of hell are at your heels.

Thumbnail is designed by me on pixelLab and other images are screenshot from the movie