As an undercover MI6 agent is sent to Berlin, Atomic Blonde is an investigation into the death of an agent, but also an investigation into loyalty.
Shifting loyalties, a double agent in the mix, and East-Berlin excess are the sort of contents that make my mouth water. Couple that with fantastic and inventive action sequences including a ‘single-shot’ fight scene I should have been leaving the cinema ready and willing to buy another ticket. Unfortunately, Atomic Blonde doesn’t live up to its potential. Ultimately dull and shallow, Atomic Blonde has no personality.
With so much distrust and uncertainty, the inter-personal relationships between the characters are so devoid character that you’re left not caring who the double agent is and who’s not. You’re so aware of the distrust and the ‘life of spy’ that you can’t become invested in anyone. Charlize Theron does her best to rescue what is a wooden script but fails. Not even James MacAvoy’s usual brilliance can relieve Atomic Blonde from an obsession of style over substance.
The sequences are truly beautiful, the stylisation incredible and the fight scenes refreshingly realistic. To see two fighters so exhausted and hurt during a fight that they can barely move was refreshingly interesting and probably the most exciting part of the film. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t make up for films failings. Theron’s character Lorraine Broughton who began as an intriguing enigma became so complex there’s almost no way to understand her motivation, and for me, that’s where Atomic Blonde lost it.
The transition from graphic novel to film is always difficult. From a format where style is everything to one where stories need to develop quickly has been difficult for Atomic Blonde. It’s not terrible, and fans of fight scenes alone would love it, but it wasn’t great either.
Based on a series of novels written by ex- Special Boat Services commando Duncan Falconer, the titular John Stratton is an SBS operator who must track down an international terrorist cell.
Director Simon West goes searching for a more grounded take on Bond, Bourne and Mission Impossible’s Ethan Hunt and delivers a kinetic, globe-trotting action-thriller that plays more like BBC’s Spooks by way of ITV’s Ultimate Force. The noughties televisual element is unsurprising considering the low budget nature of the movie and for the most part, the filmmakers do their best to develop tension, intrigue and believable threat.
Dominic Cooper once again proves that he has the chutzpah to be a notable lead. His physicality in the role is commendable as he performed many of his own stunts and does a grand job of traversing cliché-ridden dialogue. We also get a great turn from Derek Jacobi (is there any other kind?) who could’ve certainly done with more screen time as the surrogate father figure for Stratton, and Thomas Kretschmann’s villain proving once again that he’d make a compelling antagonist for Bond, Bourne or Hunt. He’s an actor who understands the concept of “less is more” and we’re thankfully spared the bad guy monologues and shouty moments you often see in films of this ilk.
The rest of the cast are a mixed bag. Gemma Chan manages to engage with a paper-thin character, Tom Felton does his best Tom Felton, and Connie Nielsen keeps a straight face through some of the choppiest moments in the godawful screenplay. The plot beats are very much “by the numbers” and it’s the script suffers from a kitchen sink approach to clichéd, groan-worthy dialogue. But it’s likely that you won’t be watching this movie for profound political statement or stirring character arcs.
Stratton works best when the pace is rapid and the action, packed. From car chases in Rome, speeding boats across the Thames (sort of) and an explosive conclusion, there’s enough expedient choreography to keep the film chipping along at a merry pace. Nathaniel Méchaly’s score is reminiscent of his work on the Taken franchise but with a hint of David Arnold’s Bond orchestrations. Unfortunately, viewers with any knowledge of London may find the chase through the city in the final reel unintentionally humorous as the locations covered make for some geographical feats of cinematic fancy.
If you’ve seen any 21st Century action thrillers in the past few years, then there will likely be no surprises in Stratton. However, there’s potential in the protagonist and I hope Simon West, Dominic Cooper and co. get to tackle a second outing with the character to push beyond the pedestrian and break new territory.
Following on from the similar docu-drama aesthetic of The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty, director Kathryn Bigelow reconstructs the events that led to the murder of three black men by police officers during the Detroit riots of 1967.
Developed using testimonies and witness accounts, screenwriter Mark Boal reconstructs the terrifying and fateful encounter in a hyper-real manner that draws focus not only on the hardship black Americans suffered against a predominantly white police force, but also underlining an environment where the living standards and financial disparity carve a trench in the racial divide.
Bigelow and Boal, along with cinematographer Barry Ackroyd and editor William Goldenberg recreate a horrific intensity akin to the bombast of Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk but transposed to the claustrophobic confines of The Algiers Motel. The gut-wrenching barbarism of the violence inflicted, the egregious abuse of power by the police officers involved and the sense of fear for the victims is almost overwhelming. You are immersed in the brutality and it is a profound and sickening thing.
Each of the cast has complete ownership within their role and to see such dynamism within a fraught and impactful story helps command verisimilitude. The disparity between John Boyega’s morally aligned night watchman and the fascistic cops portrayed by Will Poulter, Ben O’Toole and Jack Reynor, compounds the powerlessness of the victims once torture and interrogation are inflicted upon them.
Algee Smith and Jacob Latimore provide a tangible link between the atrocities and the beating heart of Detroit, Michigan circa 1967, Motown. From our introduction to The Dramatics backstage at a music hall we see a young band of Motown performers full of a thirst for fame and glory. The duo who attend The Algiers, escaping the chaos of the riots are the closest the audience has to lead performers in this story and by the conclusion we see a shift in mind-set and life’s focus that provides the only true closure to the onscreen events.
Sadly, the court case and conclusion that follows on from the pressure and horror of the murders at the motel are not constructed with the same level of scrutiny or pacing. Not only is the outcome of the film a let-down but it also meanders in a way we’ve grown unaccustomed to in the tightly knit first two acts that have preceded it. This is a gripping drama that loses focus in the final reel and doesn’t offer a satisfying conclusion, but perhaps that’s the point. As a work of cinema, it horrifies, infuriates and informs. There is no full stop at the end of Bigelow’s film and perhaps that’s a not-so subtle message, that, this ugly chapter in American history has yet to reach an end.
There isn’t a man or woman who doesn’t know of Stephen King these days. And why should that not be the case? While King himself would say otherwise, there is no denying that the man has become one of the greatest and most influential authors of modern times. He has written countless books, namely in the horror genre, and his work has been adapted into countless films and mini-series. There was a time when I would read nothing but Stephen King books and I have seen many of the adaptations of his work – from the amazing The Shining and The Shawshank Redemption to the far from amazing Sleepwalkers and The Graveyard Shift. These days however, I find it hard to get into his work due to the repeat of his stories, which makes sense when you consider how much he’s written.
And one book, or book series, that has fallen victim to my King illiteracy is what many consider his magnum-opus; The Dark Tower.
Years later we now have a film to go with the novels. Although from what I hear, this film is about as accurate to the book as the Percy Jackson films were to the Rick Riordan novels. The story we are presented is that of young Jake, a young kid with strange abilities – you know, maybe it was apt that I mentioned Percy Jackson earlier. This kid has psychic powers, the Shining to be exact, in a pretty cool link to King’s universe. With the Shining, Jake has dreams of a man in a black suit destroying a titanic black tower – and that only a gunslinger with expert marksman skills can stop him. Jake soon finds his way to a different world and must help the gunslinger, and himself, take revenge on the devil in the black suit. For if the tower falls all hell, literally, breaks loose.
When this film started most of my optimism died-out. Why? Because, for the beginning at least, this film follows that formula of late 2000’s-early 2010’s young-adult fantasy adaptations. It felt just like Percy Jackson; like the awful City of Bones; like the more recent (but pretty good) Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. With that, I had a feeling that I knew what I was in for – and boy was I dreading it. With the exception of Miss Peregrine’s, this formula has never worked, and I have no idea why it’s still being used. The acting wasn’t helping either. We hadn’t seen Roland the gunslinger or Walter (yes, Walter) the man in black yet, and everyone before them was pretty awful. The actor for Jake was wooden, and his voice was clearly breaking during the filming. Coupled with messy writing and basic directing, I was taken out of this film very early on. Then we got to the other world.
In this other world, we finally meet Roland and Walter, played by the film’s celebrities Idris Elba and Mathew McConaughey. It here that the film finally starts to feel alive. Almost immediately the directing picks up, becoming more visually interesting and even a little creative. There’s a moment in the ruins of a theme park that feels like classic Stephen King. The acting improves drastically too. Elba stands out here – not only does he look the part, and looks very cool too, he plays it with the right amount of seriousness and satire to the Clint Eastwood westerns. He almost single-handedly carries the film with charisma and gravitas.
Sadly, less positive can be said about McConaughey. Not that he was bad, although he was far from top-form. But he plays the role in a way that anybody else could have. He’s that classic silly villain – while his dialogue and character is pretty well written, he himself is constantly whispering his lines, hiding in the shadows and always has a henchman to take his coat. He is clearly having fun, but is also trying to take things seriously. I don’t know if it’s creative choices, what the director was telling him or if he was just miscast, but something was letting him down here.
For the most part, the film plays like a young-adult adaptation – albeit darker than most. Despite an obvious benefit of a higher rating, we have a 12a film. Censored brutality and mild creeps throughout. There’s a good bit of CGI here, and not all of it is very convincing. The characters are surprisingly fun and engaging, particularly as the film goes on, but are fairly underdeveloped. Some scenes caught me by surprise, but for the most part it follows a very familiar formula.
Where the film really shines is in its action. They actually get away with a few things 12a’s don’t usually do in moments – nothing majorly violent or gory, but a little harder than you’d think. The gunslinger scenes we a constant blast, no pun intended. The man in black gets some pretty awesome and even intimidating moments here and there too. Awesome shoot outs and creative uses of magic help this film out of the hole the story’s in.
While The Dark Tower starts off very poor it ends on an enjoyably thrilling, dumb-fun note. I can almost promise that this is not how the books go, but it’s enjoyable none-the-less.
The Dark Tower might rightfully rub book fans the wrong way, and if I had to hazard a guess I’d say King wouldn’t be overly thrilled with the end result either.
But, if you’re like me and haven’t read the books you may find that there’s some fun to be had once you plough through the opening and switch your brain off. If you look at The Dark Tower on sites like Rotten Tomatoes or Metacritic then you’ll see that it’s getting panned. Personally, I wouldn’t be that harsh on it as I found it overall enjoyable, if messy. But at the same time, it’s not the first film I would defend. It’s much better than most of the King adaptations out there. My advice is see it for yourself if you haven’t read the books. If you have, then it’ll probably be best if you leave this one to crumble.
What is it about buddie-action comedies that makes them so forgettable now days? I’m serious, I just saw The Hitman’s Bodyguard and I already can’t remember most of it. How is that managed with this cast? I don’t know, maybe it has something to do with it being directed by the man who gave us the worst Expendables film. Whatever the case, here we are.
The story to The Hitman’s Bodyguard is actually pretty hard to decipher. Not that it’s complicated, it’s just so bland and forgettable. It has something to do with Gary Oldman is an Eastern European dictator who is put on trial by the EU or UN or some other equivalent. But, not being able to find hard evidence, outside of bias witness accounts (like there’s any other form of witness account), the people need someone who has hard evidence against Oldman. Set in Samuel L Jackson, a hitman with a heart of gold. He needs to be taken from Manchester to Amsterdam. Set in Ryan Reynolds, a down on his luck bodyguard with only his dignity left to lose. From there on out we have our buddie-movie.
Let’s all be completely honest; the plot is nothing to write home about. Its only reason for being is to put Jackson and Reynolds together. That’s really what people are coming for; the on-screen duo, some laughs and some action. And, being fair to the film it does deliver what it promises. Jackson and Reynolds have great comedic chemistry, and when they’re both on-screen together the film comes alive. Jackson plays his part extremely well. I would say that this role was written for him, if we didn’t all know how true that is. Everything about this character screams Samuel L Jackson – from quick and philosophising remarks, to his usual parental intercourse catchphrase every three sentences. Reynolds, on the other hand, is a bit more conflicting. He’s hilarious, as Ryan Reynolds is, but he didn’t fit his character. Remember the character of Nicholas Angel from Hot Fuzz? That’s what this character basically is, an over-the-top by-the-book safety nut. But Reynolds plays it more like Deadpool – giving us the comebacks and remarks of Deadpool. Funny yes, but definitely not in character.
Other characters are Reynolds’ ex-fiancée, who was okay in the role but had no chemistry with anybody in the film. Salma Hayek plays Jackson’s wife, and she is easily the best part of the film. She plays this imprisoned woman who claims that she is innocent, as do many others – yet she is anything but. She was also used the appropriate amount throughout the film, as any more and she might have started to grate on our nerves a bit. Other than them there’s not really much point in going on. Pretty much everybody else is completely forgettable here. Even Gary Oldman, who I usual love, barely registered to me. His role could have gone to anyone and not a thing would be missed.
Outside of that, there’s not a massive amount to talk about. Mostly the film is just fine. The music is fine. The acting is fine. The use of locations and sets are fine. The humour is good, but that is mostly because of the actors they have playing these roles. The action is surprisingly strong too, and is certainly more violent than I was expecting. The 15 rating is definitely earned on this one.
The directing was very strange to me. Mostly the film was directed, you guessed it, fine. But, there were multiple shots throughout this film that were really bizarrely done. Remember those J.J. Abrams films and the use of lens-flairs? Well take that, but make it incompetently done. Sometimes the lighting was so over-exposed that it blinded the screen – but even when it didn’t, the over-exposure was really distracting. It looked like a bad phone-pic. And because of this, often in the film the screen felt blurred, sometimes really badly. It is possible that that last point was just my screening, but if it’s not then that is a really strange filming choice to have made. There was only one quicker way to draw me out of the film.
It’s time we talked about this film’s tone. Or lack thereof. The Hitman’s Bodyguard feels like three different films are competing to be viewed.
One is a tribute to the ‘90’s action comedies; such as ConAir, The Rock and Face/Off. The other is an unapologetic, bad taste comedy with dark humour and hilarious violent scenes; not too dissimilar from Peter Jackson’s early films like Bad Taste, Meet the Feebles and Brain Dead. And the final tone is a very dark political thriller, where people feel raw emotion for the dark moments in their lives. It is made even worse by the fact that we get all three of these tones together in the first three scenes of the film. I’m sorry, but I feel I have the right to complain when the first scene of this film has a man getting shot and is played for laughs – which then gets followed almost immediately with a scene where a man watches his wife and child get executed in front of him, and is left to live with that image. Truth be told, the film only really works when it plays by the rules of the bad taste comedy. To me, that pretty much proves what this film should have been all along.
The Hitman’s Bodyguard will entertain you if you know what you’re in for. It’s nothing special, but it’s not terrible either. It’s just mediocre. I guess I can recommend it, but not in the cinema. DVD or TV will do just fine. The tonal inconsistencies are unforgivable, but its biggest sin is that it’s just forgettable. Truth be told, I will have probably forgotten about it completely after the weekend.
