Chilean director Ernesto Díaz Espinoza has been reliably cranking out action films for almost 20 years now, not to mention also writing and editing many of them, and kind of single handedly putting Chilean cinema on the international stage. Much of his work has been in collaboration with another rising star of the international action scene, Mr. Marko Zaror. Together they’ve brought us Mirageman (2006), Kiltro (2006), Mandrill (2008), Redeemer (2014), and Fist Of The Condor (2023). I’ve personally seen and enjoyed all of those titles to varying extents, and probably rank Fist Of The Condor as their best collaboration. So they’re on a roll, even as Zaror continues to shine in top notch action projects like John Wick Chapter 4.
For their latest collaboration, they brought in the hardest working man in modern action cinema, Mr. Scott Adkins, to be the leading man in Diablo. Adkins is a talent I follow just about anywhere, having seen virtually every single project he’s ever starred in. Lately I’ve slowed down a little and haven’t caught all of his most recent work outside of stellar turns in One More Shot and John Wick Chapter 4. Here in Diablo he plays Kris Chaney, a guy who seems to be our protagonist and hero, but who also kidnaps a teenage girl (Alanna De La Rossa as Elisa) in the first act to spark our curiosity and keep us on our toes. As Kris and Elisa form a bit of an understanding amidst repeated attempts at Elisa’s life, the landscape is cleared for a major showdown between Adkins’ straight man Kris and Zaror’s frightening and flamboyant hired killer El Corvo (“the crooked”).
The bones of Diablo are quite solid. Adkins, Zaror, and Espinoza assisted on story with Mat Sansom writing. It seems clear the story was honed to highlight some of the stars’ best talents and capabilities. Kris is a bit of a square, but as his back story is unveiled we come to root for him to win over Elisa and rescue her from Vicente, the drug dealing kingpin who has also raised her as a loving father. Kris and Vicente (Lucho Valesco) have a past, which complicates things. But El Corvo is a mystery to Kris, and it’s Zaror’s crazed serial killing hitman who is the absolute standout of Diablo. Zaror pulls out all the stops to create what is hands down one of his most memorable characters to date. Bald, bespectacled, and bewildering, El Corvo is like a martial arts practicing Anton Chigur from No Country For Old Men. He’s disciplined, unsettling, and he absolutely will not stop. Ever. Until you are dead. So you’ve got equal parts Chigur, the Terminator, and even a little Han from Enter The Dragon with his interchangeable prosthetic hands that sometimes serve as assets in his murderous toolkit.
I will say that Zaror’s psycho killer is far and away the best and most entertaining part of Diablo. Zaror’s performance is dialed in, the writing is chilling, and the realization of this character through the fights and set pieces is wildly entertaining. To some extent, Zaror far outshines everyone else and runs away with the movie. I think 10 years from now El Corvo will be the element audiences generally remember from Diablo. That said, there’s genuinely a lot to like beyond Zaror. Espinoza is a clean-as-hell action director and Adkins comes off looking fantastic in his various fight scenes. Composer “Rocco” infuses the film with a catchy electronic score. And ultimately the bond between Kris and Elisa is pretty well done.
But beyond Zaror’s frightening killer character, the second most standout element would have to be the final action setpiece. I won’t spoil many of the dynamics at play in this epic conclusion, but I will say it’s set in an old factory (where most self-respecting DTV action films wrap up if we’re being honest). And there’s an absolutely mental ticking clock working against our heroes that you have to see to believe. Diablo thrives not on wads of major studio cash for a spectacle-laden CGI finale, but rather harkens back to the literal silent film days, with a damsel in distress tied to railroad tracks and a mustache twirling villain cackling as our hero desperately tries to save the day. As a lifelong action fan, even I will say that one the genre’s biggest faults is its samey-ness. There’s only so many ways to kick and punch someone, or to save the damsel, or to outfox the villain. Here in 2025, Diablo thrives on finding ways to make itself stand out with solid essential bones and successful theatrical flare harkening back to the earliest days of cinema.
And I’m Out.
Diablo hits theaters, on demand, and digital on June 13th, 2025 from Lionsgate
