Introduction
I was looking for something to watch the other night while feeling under the weather, and I came across Play Dirty on Prime Video — a new film directed by Shane Black, starring Mark Wahlberg and Lakeith Stanfield. Intrigued, I watched the trailer and was stunned to see it billed as an adaptation of the Parker novels by Richard Stark (a pen name of Donald Westlake). But as a longtime fan who’s read 24 of those novels, I saw little to no resemblance.
Let me say upfront: crime fiction is my favorite genre, and the Parker books were my gateway into it. These stories follow a criminal, Parker, as he commits heists with brutal precision, detached pragmatism, and an unshakable moral code (by criminal standards, anyway). He is no antihero; he is a professional thief, through and through. Over the years, there have been eight previous film adaptations of Parker novels, including:
Made in U.S.A. (The Jugger)
Point Blank (The Hunter)
Mise à Sac (The Score)
The Split (The Seventh)
The Outfit (The Outfit)
Slayground (Slayground)
Payback (The Hunter)
Parker (Flashfire)
I’ve seen six of these, and only Point Blank (1967) and Payback (1999) even begin to capture the cold, methodical nature of the Parker character. The rest are loose interpretations at best. I’m also a big fan of Shane Black. From Lethal Weapon (1987) to Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) to The Nice Guys (2016), his work often blends noir sensibilities with pulp flair and sharp dialogue. So I was genuinely curious: what would Black do with Parker? Unfortunately, Play Dirty does not feel like a Parker story at all.
Synopsis
The film opens with a robbery gone wrong — a classic Stark setup — but quickly veers into generic action-thriller territory. Flashy set pieces and convoluted subplots replace the intricate and psychological tension of the Parker novel. That said, Mark Wahlberg’s performance as Parker is surprisingly on point. He plays the character as a no-nonsense professional. A criminal who is not necessarily evil, but certainly not someone you want to cross. Wahlberg captures that cold efficiency and menace well.
Lakeith Stanfield plays Grofield, Parker’s occasional partner-in-crime, who moonlights as an actor when not pulling heists. Stanfield does a solid job with the role, and his character’s conflicting passions are nicely underplayed. However, the script gives him little to work with.
The central plot revolves around a priceless treasure recovered off the coast of a South American nation, now on display in New York. A rebel faction wants to steal it back before the country’s dictator claims it for himself. Rosa Salazar plays Zen, the rebel leader and a former member of Parker’s crew. Parker’s motivation for getting involved in the heist is not the treasure, but tracking down Zen. Complicating matters further is the involvement of the Outfit, a mob organization with whom Parker has a bloody history.
Discussion
It is all too much. Instead of the clean, efficient plotting Stark was known for, Play Dirty piles on unnecessary twists, a bloated ensemble cast, and tonal shifts that undermine the story’s impact. Black also injects humor in ways that feel out of place, as if he were trying to remake The Hot Rock (1972), another adaptation of Donald Westlake’s work, albeit one intentionally comedic. In fact, The Hot Rock was originally meant to be a Parker novel, but Westlake realized it was too funny for that grim world, so he rewrote it.
Some of the comic relief in Play Dirty comes from crewmembers played by Keegan-Michael Key, Claire Lovering, and Chai Hansen. While talented actors, their presence muddies the tone — are we watching a sharp crime film or a heist comedy? Black seems unsure. Even Tony Shalhoub, cast as mob boss Lozini, delivers a fine performance, but it’s difficult to separate him from his more comedic past roles. Worse, the mob is portrayed as bumbling and ineffective, undermining any real sense of threat.
Conclusion
Perhaps the most frustrating thing is this: Black did not need to invent a new Parker story. The novels are right there: lean, stylish, and cinematic, begging for adaptation. Why not bring one of them faithfully to the screen? Play Dirty does not do that. While Wahlberg’s Parker is close to the mark, the film surrounding him is not.
Ultimately, Play Dirty feels more like a generic action flick than a gritty crime story. It’s a missed opportunity, both for Shane Black and for fans of one of the greatest characters in crime fiction. No surprise it skipped theaters and went straight to streaming.
