1. Plot Summary
Samaritan (2022) follows Sam Cleary, a 13-year-old boy living in a rough Granite City neighborhood. He suspects that his reclusive neighbor Joe Smith is actually Samaritan, a legendary superhero thought to have died decades earlier in a battle against his twin brother Nemesis.
The legend goes that Samaritan fought for justice while Nemesis embraced vengeance. Their final confrontation at a power plant supposedly killed them both. Yet Sam believes Samaritan survived.
Joe lives quietly as a garbage man, hiding his past. But when Sam’s life becomes entangled with local gang leader Cyrus — who idolizes Nemesis and seeks to resurrect his ideology — Joe is forced out of hiding. As the city descends into chaos, Sam uncovers the truth: Joe is not Samaritan, but Nemesis himself, who survived and has since tried to suppress his violent nature.
In the climax, Joe/Nemesis battles Cyrus and his gang in explosive fashion, protecting Sam but also revealing his darker identity. The film ends on an ambiguous note: though not the hero Sam believed in, Joe still chooses to act heroically, leaving Sam to decide what “hero” really means.
2. Notable Elements
Strengths:
- Sylvester Stallone’s presence: As Joe, Stallone brings weight and gravitas. His physicality, combined with a weary, reluctant demeanor, sells the idea of a fallen, aged superhuman.
- Superhero groundedness: Unlike Marvel/DC spectacle, Samaritan is smaller in scale, blending superhero tropes with gritty urban crime drama. The action is brutal and physical, not overly CGI-heavy.
- Moral twist: The reveal that Joe is Nemesis, not Samaritan, subverts expectations and gives the story more depth.
- Sam’s perspective: The film uses the boy’s belief, innocence, and yearning for heroes as an emotional anchor.
Weaknesses:
- Predictability: Despite the twist, much of the narrative follows familiar “reluctant hero protects child from criminals” beats.
- Thin villain: Cyrus is more archetypal than layered, mostly serving as a stand-in for chaos rather than a fully fleshed antagonist.
- Limited world-building: Granite City feels underdeveloped; the social/economic backdrop is hinted at but not deeply explored.
- Tone balance: Sometimes uneven — switching between gritty realism and comic-book exaggeration.
3. Themes and Messages
- Heroism and Identity: The core question is what makes someone a hero. Joe is Nemesis, yet his actions — protecting Sam, resisting violence — redefine him.
- Myth vs. Reality: The story explores how legends are told, distorted, or believed. Sam’s belief in Samaritan reflects humanity’s need for heroes, regardless of truth.
- Fatherhood & Mentorship: Joe reluctantly becomes a father figure for Sam, shaping his view of courage, morality, and resilience.
- Cycle of Violence: The film suggests that vengeance, hate, and violence repeat across generations unless confronted and redirected.
- Socioeconomic despair: Granite City’s poverty and crime form the backdrop, showing how hopelessness fuels idolization of destructive figures like Nemesis.
4. Personal Impressions
What worked for me:
- Stallone’s restrained, weary performance — effective and different from overblown superhero acting.
- The grounded action scenes — less about flying lasers, more about sheer physical force.
- The central twist — Nemesis surviving — which reframes earlier moments and adds moral ambiguity.
- The Sam–Joe relationship — heart of the film, with Sam’s youthful optimism challenging Joe’s cynicism.
What faltered:
- Villain underdevelopment — Cyrus is flashy but shallow, lacking depth beyond “chaotic Nemesis fanboy.”
- Pacing — at times slow in the middle, with filler before the inevitable showdown.
- Emotional depth — some opportunities (Joe’s guilt, Nemesis’s true past) are only partially explored.
- The ending — while satisfying in action, leaves some philosophical questions too lightly touched.
5. Audience Recommendations
Will enjoy if you:
- Like superhero films with a smaller, grittier scale (closer to Unbreakable than Marvel).
- Enjoy Stallone in action roles, especially with an aged, reluctant-hero spin.
- Appreciate films that play with superhero myths and moral grayness.
- Want a straightforward but slightly subversive action story.
Might not enjoy if you:
- Expect high-budget superhero spectacle with elaborate effects and large universes.
- Dislike darker, morally ambiguous heroes.
- Prefer tightly plotted, twist-heavy narratives.
- Want complex villains or deep world-building.
6. Conclusions and Rating
Samaritan is a modest, gritty superhero thriller. It’s not groundbreaking, but its grounded action, Stallone’s performance, and its central twist make it more memorable than a generic “superhero comeback” movie. By mixing comic-book mythology with urban realism, it asks: can someone once branded a villain still choose to be a hero? lc
Star Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3 out of 5)
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