Ben Wheatley’s Normal has a big problem. Bob Odenkirk gives a wonderfully underplayed performance that deserves a strong film. Unfortunately, the screenplay by Derek Koldstad (from a story by Odenkirk) wants to be too many things; ultimately becoming messy and ultra-preposterous.
Make no mistake, there are some exciting action moments and a few good belly laughs regarding the audacity of a couple kills. With a decent amount of interest and good will, Normal has a solid setup that primes the audience for the type of modern action picture that is colored by the John Wick/Nobody/every-Jason-Statham-movie filmmaking style. Some fans might have a blast once the mayhem gets rolling. Others will roll their eyes to the point of blindness.
Deceptively mellow Ulysses Richardson (Odenkirk) has taken a job as the interim sheriff in Normal, Minnesota; a small town where the crimes consist of unruly customers and illegal parking. The previous sheriff died under strange circumstances, but everyone remembers him fondly.
For Ulysses, the gig will be an easy 8 weeks until the town elects their new sheriff. The job seems fairly dull, until Ulysses begins to notice how things are slightly askew almost everywhere he goes.
The mayor (a wasted but fun Henry Winkler) seems welcoming, but something isn’t right about his demeanor. With too few moments of screen time, the always good Winkler does well, but the part is underwritten and seems to exist only for an admittedly funny payoff later in the film, and it is a doozy!
Something else that doesn’t seem right is the fact that this small haven is about to begin renovating their buildings at a cost no town of this size could possibly afford.
Finally, everywhere Ulysses goes, he sees guns. From the restaurant to the bar and even the hardware store, the town of Normal is armed to the teeth.
Normal, Minnesota has something to hide. Normal, the film has all of its cards on the table right from the beginning and Wheatley’s film is playing a losing hand.
Derek Koldstad’s script is a standard action thriller. This isn’t a complaint, as formula pictures are sometimes just what we need for a night of escapism. In the mid-1970s and 80s, Charles Bronson began to repeat himself in movie after movie. As did Stallone, Chuck Norris, and Schwarzenegger. Most of these guys had a solid output of action pictures and no one minded the repetitive plot lines. With Normal, Koldstad’s writing is so lazy, the clichés aren’t molded into anything interesting and the attempts at humor are embarrassing.
As the film unfolds, it becomes too much and not enough, while the characters are a murderer’s row of preposterously written townies right out of central casting.
There is the introduction of a would-be-bank-robbing young couple who cross paths with Ulysses and later become part of the whole shebang. The possibilities of their inclusion could have provided something emotionally potent, but the film does nothing with them.
The townsfolk are designed with the standard small town quirks colored by Fargo-esque mannerisms audiences have experienced time and time again.
Would you believe that the deputy is a bit of a goofball? Of course you would. Action Movie law dictates that every deputy to an ass-kicking sheriff must be something of a modern “Barney Fife.”
Bob Odenkirk has found a nice sub-career as an action star. 2021’s Nobody was a fun one-off. The 2025 sequel was not, but both pictures gave Odenkirk a challenge that he met with supreme devotion. The actor never played it tongue-in-cheek. Odenkirk made you believe he could kick some serious bad guy butt.
Normal finds the actor/comedian giving a subdued and believable performance as a sheriff with emotional baggage. Ulysses is, perhaps, hiding out in this small town at the tip of the country. An incident in his past has caused the lawman to question his moral compass and loses his marriage. As much as this new gig gives him the isolation he needs, Ulysses is hiding from himself. What happens in the film’s final act will give him a violence-tinged catharsis and put him on a road to redemption.
Bob Odenkirk gives the character a gravitas the film cannot find.
All is not lost. Director Wheatley does give the film’s middle section a fun jolt. Once the action ensues, the screen is splattered with bullets and blood. People get blown to hell by grenade launchers and bashed with meat tenderizers and frying pans. Even snowplows get used in gruesome manners. Is it fun? Sure, but nothing jaw-dropping and it is all too familiar.
Normal isn’t a bad film. There are things to like. Odenkirk’s committed work and the wild action set-pieces get us through, but when the film ends, its impact fades before we reach the parking lot.
Written by one of the creators of John Wick, action fans deserved more.
Normal
Written by Derek Koldstad
Directed by Ben Wheatley
Starring Bob Odenkirk, Henry Winkler, Lena Headey, Billy MacLellan, R3na Jolly, Brendan Fletcher
R, 90 Minutes, Magnolia Pictures, Magnet Releasing, OPE Partners
