Normal review (2026)
Normal gives Bob Odenkirk another opportunity to channel his inner second act Liam Neeson with another wild action spectacle.
Compared to Odenkirk’s Nobody franchise, Normal skews a bit more theatrical with the dark comedy to frequently sillier results. It’s not going to be for every viewer, but for those who lean into its goofiness, Normal is a very entertaining and pleasant surprise.
Odenkirk (Nobody 2) plays Ulysses Richardson, who arrives in the small town of Normal to serve as the interim sheriff after the unexpected death of the longtime peacekeeper. Ulysses doesn’t realize that Normal is anything but as an opening act shows two Yakuza members including Joe (Peter Shinkoda) being sent to the town — a punishment for a past transgression. Three of them messed up, but the third lost his head, see also having it sliced off for failure to slice off his own finger.
After establishing the anything goes rules for Normal, director Ben Wheatley settles into the illusion of an ordinary town happy to have a go with the flow sheriff like Ulysses. John Wick, Nobody screenwriter Derek Kolstad — who fleshed out the story with Odenkirk — teases a traumatic event that occurred at Ulysses’ previous police chief stint that’s left him broken and essentially going through the motions with his career not to mention putting his marriage on the rocks.
That works fine for a town like Normal where the residents seem to be just a tad too friendly and disarming. The mayor (Henry Winkler) likes him and hopes Ulysses will opt to make his stint in town more than a temporary gig. Ulysses doesn’t mind the slow pace of the town with the biggest threats to the peace are a few squabbles among the citizens over prices compared to online stores and the color of yarn.
His co-workers are harmless. Deputy Mike Nelson (Billy MacLellan, Nobody) is saving up for a motorcycle while Deputy Blaine Anderson (Ryan Allen, Get Rich or Die Tryin’) is vying for the sheriff role and hoping Ulysses puts a good word in for him.
Ulysses does notice that Normal has a surprising amount of ammunition ranging from automatic machine guns, grenade launchers and even C4. That doesn’t line up with the overly cheery demeanor of the people.
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Naturally, he’s drawn to the town’s outliers from the calls it like she sees it bartender Moira (Lena Headey), the sheriff’s adult child Alex (Jess McLeod) back from a military stint and very uncertain about their father’s death and a couple, Lori (Reena Jolly) and Keith (Brendan Fletcher), also staying at the small motel.
Odenkirk is a natural for this kind of role where his calm delivery and measured everyman charisma is an easy fit. He makes Ulysses a kind, likable character you want to see overcome his demons. Normal boasts a fantastic supporting cast with fully dialed-in performances all around with Allen, MacLellan, Headey, Winkler, Jolly, Fletcher, Shinkoda and McLeod especially standing out.
Ulysses might get a chance to deal with his demons sooner than he thinks. Following a botched bank robbery by Lori and Keith, he learns the town’s secret leaving him with few allies against a town desperately trying to preserve their unique way of life.
With the big secret outed, Wheatley shifts Normal to a wilder, unpredictable action extravaganza. The deaths could be considered gory if Wheatley wasn’t able to somehow make these horrific incidents so hilarious. By all rights, the exploding body parts, impalements, skewering and other graphic deaths laced with so much ironic humor should not work.
The most charming aspect to Normal is how the chaos genuinely comes off as chaotically messy and equally surprising to Ulysses as it is the viewer. For viewers with a darker sense of humor, Normal might provide some of the year’s biggest intentional laughs.
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
Photo Credit: Magnolia Pictures
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