Antonio Banderas’ 2017 action film Security is the exact midpoint between Die Hard and Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Those who’ve seen Kevin James’ classic parable may recall that it is a Die Hard pastiche. That film swaps out the high-octane action for terrible slapstick but borrows most of the genre trappings. Security perfectly splits the difference in stakes, tone, and quality. Die Hard is perfect, but Paul Blart is awful, so Security is actually pretty good. Everyone on Netflix seems to agree.
Antonio Banderas’ 2017 Action Schlock Brings Netflix Some Security
Security follows Antonio Banderas as Eddie, a former Marine with PTSD that never really comes up beyond the introduction. A failed psychological evaluation leaves him without job prospects, forcing him to take a minimum-wage mall security gig. He meets his coworkers, all of whom are young, inexperienced, and unhappy to be there. On Eddie’s first night, a pre-teen girl runs screaming into the door. Eddie discovers that Ben Kingsley needs her dead to prevent her from testifying against a mob boss. Armed with little more than tasers and found objects, Eddie and the guards must make a stand. Waves of armed terrorists attack with a variety of absurd tactics. It’s Die Hard, but in a mall. It’s Paul Blart: Mall Cop, but not complete garbage. The straight-to-DVD premise is perfect for countless silly creative decisions.
I laughed through a lot of Security, but that’s absolutely a compliment. At one point, a group of US Marshals burst in, but their jackets read “USA Marshals.” The film reveals that they’re secretly evil henchmen in disguise, but the incorrect jackets weren’t an in-universe ruse. Eddie clocks them because one of them has a gang tattoo on his neck. This occurs after the first terrorist to breach the building uses a climbing axe to scale the mall like one of Immortan Joe’s war boys. Antonio Banderas is excellent, as expected, in this easy action part. He does some low-level John Wick fighting, but a couple of John Woo-style dives while duel-wielding pistols stand out. Supporting actor Liam McIntyre also deserves special accommodations. He starred in Spartacus: Vengeance and played JD in Gears of War, but his American accent in this film makes him sound exactly like John Cena.
I don’t know if Security deserves to be on Netflix’s international top ten, but it’s the only spotlight it’s ever received. Antonio Banderas starred in several of these low-budget action B-movies in the 2010s. It’s a shame to see him wasting his time on the same kind of messy Redbox bait as Bruce Willis or Steven Seagal. He’s been killing it in animated projects like Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. He has minor roles in upcoming films like Paddington in Peru and Babygirl, but he seems to struggle to find starring parts. I, for one, want to see him in something great again. If he can elevate stuff like this, imagine what he can do with a good script.
