A Paramount Picture, Written by Mark Burnell, Directed by Reed Marano.
A “spy film” from the producers of James Bond, directed by Reed Marano, and starring Blake Lively should be a huge deal, especially to the people who are always clamouring for a ‘female bond’. However, the film was poorly marketed and the final product is lacklustre.
This is much more of a character study about a woman’s breakdown following the loss of her family and how she chooses unusual methods to do so, than an action film. It is a far cry from the sexy and kick ass heroines of films like Red Sparrow and Atomic Blonde, which happened to be much better films that I hope someday get follow ups, and it would’ve been ok if the had been executed better anyway.
The structure of the film just feels simultaneously rushed and yet drags, with the story feeling cliched in many ways. The scene of Lively in ‘disguise’ attempting to kill someone and the impressive long take car chase are the two real moments that made me wonder what could’ve been.
I still look forward to what the clearly talented Marano does in the future, and I hope people start to back spy films starting female leads instead of just asking for male characters to be turned female, especially if they are as good as Atomic Blonde or Red Sparrow.
Blake Lively is absolutely the best thing here (despite some of the ridiculous wigs and hairstyles she is given) and she shows yet again that in the right role she is very talented and a real movie star, and I hope she gets a strong follow up role.
Rating = 2.5/5
Howe's World of Film and TV 