Peppermint

Jennifer Garner throws herself into the role of Riley North, a suburban mother who transforms into a relentless vigilante after her husband and daughter are gunned down by a drug cartel on Christmas Eve. Directed by Pierre Morel, the man behind Taken, this 2018 action-thriller takes a familiar revenge formula and lets Garner run with it. She disappears for five years, emerging as a tactical killing machine armed with Krav Maga training and a score to settle.

The film pits Riley against the Garcia cartel, a corrupt judge, and a compromised legal system that let her family's murderers walk free. John Gallagher Jr. and John Ortiz play the detectives tracking her, while Juan Pablo Raba brings menace as cartel leader Diego Garcia. Garner performed most of her own stunts after six months of training that included weapons handling and tactical driving. The $25 million production shot in just 45 days across Los Angeles locations, from Skid Row to suburban neighborhoods.

Critical reception was harsh, with a 12% Tomatometer score, but audiences were kinder, giving it a 72% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film grossed nearly $54 million worldwide and has found a second life on streaming platforms. It remains a divisive entry in the vigilante genre, praised for Garner's physical commitment but criticized for its simplistic politics and reliance on revenge cliches.[edit]

Riley North lives a quiet life in Los Angeles with her husband Chris, a mechanic, and their young daughter Carly. On Christmas Eve, Chris takes Carly to a holiday carnival. Riley, working late at the bank where she's a teller, misses the outing. That night, Chris witnesses a drug cartel hit while getting ice cream with Carly. The cartel's enforcers open fire on his truck, killing both Chris and Carly instantly. Riley, who had arrived to meet them, is caught in the crossfire and shot, falling into a coma.

She wakes up weeks later to a nightmare. The cartel's lawyers, backed by the powerful Garcia family, have corrupted the local justice system. The trial is a sham: the killers walk free, the judge dismisses the case, and Riley is left with nothing but grief and rage. She disappears without a trace.

Five years pass. Riley resurfaces in Los Angeles on the anniversary of the murders. She starts systematically eliminating everyone involved in the crime and the cover-up. Her first targets are the low-level cartel soldiers who pulled the trigger. Each killing is precise, methodical, and leaves a message. The police, led by Detectives Stan Carmichael and Moises Beltran, struggle to connect the dots. They're hampered by corruption within their own ranks and the FBI's involvement. Agent Lisa Inman leads a task force that views Riley as a terrorist, not a grieving mother.

Riley works her way up the chain, taking out the corrupt judge, the lawyers, and the cartel's enforcers. She uses her knowledge of the city, her bank teller skills (she knows where the money flows), and her combat training to stay one step ahead. The cartel, led by Diego Garcia, grows desperate. They put a bounty on her head, but Riley turns their own tactics against them. She stages a brutal attack on a cartel safe house, killing a dozen men and stealing weapons. The police and FBI scramble to catch her, but Riley always seems to know their next move.

The cat-and-mouse game intensifies as Riley targets Garcia directly. She uses a homeless informant, Sam, to gather intel on the cartel's operations. Carmichael and Beltran begin to suspect that someone inside the police department is feeding Riley information. The film builds toward a confrontation at Garcia's heavily fortified mansion, where Riley plans to end her war once and for all. But the question remains: will she kill Garcia, or find another way to make him pay?[edit]