REEL PALI: Jennifer Garner Channels ‘Alias’ Roots in ‘Peppermint’

By TRILBY BERESFORD | Reporter

Despite the fact that her performance career has spanned over 20 years and included roles that display subtlety and emotional range, Palisadian Jennifer Garner still manages to fly under the radar in the film world.

TV’s “Alias” is her big ticket; she was in it for five years, collected a slew of awards and deservedly gained many die-hard fans who have remained loyal followers.
Since the spy show ended in 2006, Garner has appeared in many renowned projects such as “Dallas Buyers Club” and “Juno.”

In 2005, she played the lead in Rob Bowman’s “Elektra,” yet the script was too poorly constructed for any impressive punches to have the desired effect.

She was last seen on screen in “Love, Simon,” which received great acclaim—yet the buzziest buzz was awarded to Nick Robinson, who played the title character.

In the upcoming film “Peppermint,” Garner plays a mother, something she has done a lot lately, however this mother is embarking on a revenge-fuelled expedition to track down the gang who shot her husband and daughter at a carnival.

This comes a year after Halle Berry played a similar role in Luis Prieto’s “Kidnap,” which received negative reviews and was poorly attended by its target audience. (Dear Hollywood: If at once you don’t succeed, try, try, try again.)

Directed by Pierre Morel, the man responsible for the first installment of “Taken,” “Peppermint” is set to offer Garner the kind of frenzied attention she received in her butt-kicking days of espionage. The action adventure drops into theaters on Sept. 7.

Until then, it’s worth venturing into Garner’s backlog to explore her work. “13 Going on 30,” directed by the late Gary Winick, remains a highlight that never gets old.

Garner has come a long way from being the “Woman in Elevator” in Woody Allen’s “Deconstructing Harry.”