Ok, I’m assuming the majority of people have Netflix, except of course our Amish listeners, Caleb and Elvesta, who can’t listen because they don’t have electricity, and spend their time baking Shoe Fly Pie. I also assume if you have Netflix you have finished, or are currently watching Tiger King and his nemesis the evil queen of the uncomfortable laugh, Carole Baskins. And if you don’t know what Tiger King is, we can’t be friends so don’t call me looking for toilet tissue and Purell. But if you want to watch a movie, I’ve got one for you. Spencer Confidential. Now if you weren’t watching TV in the 80’s the name Spencer probably doesn’t ring a bell. This was a TV show that was on from 1985 to 1988 and it starred Robert Urich as Spencer and his sidekick Hawk, played by Avery Brooks. Spencer is a Boston Cop who left the force to become a PI. Each week he solved a murder case with the help of Hawk who worked both sides of the law and always had Spencer’s back. The character is based on books by Robert B. Parker. There are over 40 books and I have read them all, so it is safe to call me fan. 

When I heard Netflix and Spencer I was skeptical but once I knew Mark Wahlberg was playing him I was good to go. I expected some changes but the biggest was Hawk. When Avery Brooks played Hawk he was the epitome of cool, a snappy dresser, only drank champagne, and worked mostly as a hired killer. Winston Duke played him completely different. Spencer has been in prison for a few years for beating up his Chief when he was a cop. Now he is out and plans to move to Arizona and drive a truck. As soon as he gets out of prison his old Chief is murdered and another cop is set up to look like he did it. But Spencer knows better and sets out to prove it. This leads to a lot of action, including a machete wielding Dominican gang.

You can always depend on Mark Wahlberg, especially if the movie is set in Boston where he lets his natural accent go crazy. Alan Arkin, who plays Henry, Spencer’s old boxing coach, does not get nearly enough to do, but when he is in a scene, he steals it. Iliza Shelseinger plays Spencer’s crazy psycho girlfriend Cissy, and trust me, she steals a few scenes herself.

Its 111 minutes, Rated R for violence and a bunch of language, with some sexual content but not much, but the language is much. But let’s be honest, curse words sound different with a thick Boston accent. 

If you are a Spence fan you will love it. Wahlberg is nothing like the late great Robert Urich, but he is Mark Wahlberg and it works. Fast paste action, fast moving, great dialog. You won’t be disappointed, I wasn’t. It also leaves room for a sequel, which doesn’t make me mad.

My Score: As a big Spencer fan, a full 6 Pack.

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