‘Play Dirty’: A Double-Cross Heist Flick in Need of Brevity

Mark Wahlberg plays the latest title character in the ‘Parker’ book adaptations.

Parker (Mark Wahlberg, L) and Grofield (LaKeith Stanfield), in “Play Dirty.” Amazon/MGM Studios

R | 2h 5m | Drama, Comedy, Crime, Action | 2025

In the first decade of his career, Shane Black wrote five produced screenplays, most of them falling into the “mismatched buddy” action category. Three of them, “Lethal Weapon” (1987), “The Last Boy Scout” (1991), and “Last Action Hero” (1993), were excellent efforts of this frequently dumbed-down sub-genre.