The Courier  ★★½

DEATH by windscreen wiper…that’s a new one.

The Courier is a 2019 action-thriller that is only distinguishable from countless other films by a few moments, including that particularly inventive death scene.

Like most weaker action films, the main problem is the story. Issues arise from the credits sequence during which we are meant to gain snippets of the back story of the female courier of the title.

But these pass way too quickly and the motivations pushing the character played by Olga Kurylenko remain a mystery throughout the film.

Amit Shah, nicely played by Nick Murch, is a police witness against a crime boss (Gary Oldman in one of his slumming roles) being held in an office building where the mysterious courier hapopens to be delivering a package.

At least I think that’s the case because it’s one of the those throw-away movies that doesn’t register in the long-term memory.

Anyway, a group of killers sent by the crime lord attack the building and the courier decides to even the odds and protect Shah. As I said, why, we never really find out and I suspect there is the suggestion of a potential series based on the character.

There is tension in parts and some good action and kills, but the gore quotient seems too high for this type of action thriller and the acting is at best uneven.