Well let's start with a round of applause to the Netflix marketing department. In a world of superhero multiverses and sub-standard Netflix big tent flicks, they've pulled off quite the coup... They've told everyone that the film will be SO bad that they have engineered probably the most watched film of the year on their service... And what will people say 'that was much better than I thought it was going to be. I'll happily rate that a 7 or 7. 5 out of 10'. Not 'this was awful, I'll only rate that a 7 or 7.5 out of 10'.

Applause and a pat on the back for a clever coup. Bravo, Netflix. Bravo.

So let's review it like any other film...

Plot? Quite predictable. Usual action spy fare. Like a long arc in a series of Nikita but it isn't offensive. Enough happening plot-wise for a series of setpieces to be hung on.

Direction? Feels a bit like Boss Level in that there's a glibness to the whole thing. Lots of silly little drone shots and fast edits, coupled with entirely unrevealing but smart-mouthed wisecracks. In short, it matches the ADHD nature of most of its sub-25 year old viewers.

Cinematography? Falls foul of that horrendous HDR 60fps way of shooting that Netflix loves but it makes everything look like a soap opera. Go back to shooting 23fps and reduce the CGI in post to match. Please.

Performances?
- Gosling is fine. Gotta feel for the guy right? He spends months getting jacked and ripped, puts in a fine performance. And the film gets destroyed by critics in a reverse marketing campaign where it makes it impossible for him to come out of it with any kudos. But I'm sure he's got a 8 figure bank transfer to show for this.
- Evans doesn't work. It's like he's channeling Timothy Dalton in Hot Fuzz and it doesn't sit right. Interesting to see him off the juice and Gosling on it to see how the reality of acting is now akin to a Men's Fitness cover shoot.
- Armas. Give her a full blooded action film already. She owns her scenes here and she did the same in No Time To Die. I'm seeing some sort of Cynthia Rothrock-style trilogy with her in the near future. Joking - she can have whatever crap they have lined up for Charlize Theron to be in and she will make it reach its full potential.
- the young dude out of Bridgerton... Terrible acting. Overwrought, unconvincing, transparent. And I bet they'll make him the next Bond. Let this be a lesson... He's not up to the task.
- Iron Fist's girlfriend. Does okay. Nothing much to work with and she out acts the Bridgerton guy without breaking a sweat. Again, Barbara Brocolli... Think before you do something stupid.

Verdict? It's a perfectly fine bog standard spy thriller that falls victim to a few of the tropes of the time. 100 locations, fast edits, AI-written script, couple of dodgy casting choices.

Is it the absolute abysmal wreck they said it was? Not at all. Is it Top Gun Maverick? Hell no.


7/10

I enjoyed this far more than I was expecting to. The reviews have been particularly harsh, and j have to say I really don’t agree with the majority of them. I really enjoyed Ryan Goslings performance (even if he logically should have died a handful of times during the film), and it was so meta to hear Chris Evans refer to him as “Ken Doll”.

The camera work in this film makes up for its lack of specificity. The drone shots help establish locations in such an effective way, even if the cinematography isn’t the most striking, for this, I feel the film felt a little “samey” with the abundance of spy action thrillers we have.

The action was sprinkled among some incredibly funny scenes, incorporating both Evans’ slapstick humour, and Goslings’ more subtle sarcastic style. I would have loved to see Anna De Armas more, she was a great character and deserved to be a co-lead with Evans and Goslings, rather than a supporter.

Did anyone else catch in the scene in the car with Chris Evans on the phone to Ryan Gosling, the phone Evans is holding very clearly has the voice notes app open? I know these sort of production errors don’t bother a lot of people, but for me, they really help determine the quality.

Overall I think this film served its purpose, and helps justify keeping Netflix in my mind. I think it’s a great watch, but sadly not a must see.

Between this and _Cherry_, it’s becoming more and more clear that the MCU’s best director is called Kevin Feige.
Netflix clearly spent a lot of money on this, you can feel the price of your subscription going up with every new set piece that’s introduced, but the end results are still unforgivingly bland and generic nonetheless.
It’s their attempt to compete with Bond, Bourne or Mission Impossible, but if anything this feels like a poser imitation of those superior blockbuster franchises.
The Russos are clearly trying to recapture that same tone and spark from their _Captain America: The Winter Soldier_ days, but they end up making something that’s more akin to the quality of _Red Notice_.
In terms of directing they kinda got outdone by their own second unit director with his Netflix action flick, as I’d argue that _Extraction_ is a marginally better film than this.
The action’s poorly done and cheaply put together, lots of annoying editing, corny dialogue, distracting CGI, boring visuals and music; not a lot to recommend about this one.
The acting’s fine, but I have absolutely no idea why an extremely picky actor like Ryan Gosling chose this script in the first place.

4/10

Anyone thinking the CIA is anything other than awful, should in my humble opinion, take a long look at their actual history.

Anyway, putting aside the predictable effort to set up this nasty little three letter acronym as virtuous, there's not a lot going on here.

Its your usual rather heavy handed, cruel, cynical, US action flick.

Exposition is polished but then it needs to be, because there's not a lot else on offer that I can see. Suffice to say, instantly watchable and just as forgettable.

So if you want simple action and can look past the not so subtle messaging, this is a marginally alright watch.

Seing this as another run to the mill Netflix release should not keep your hopes up. Netflix is where mediocre goes to congreate to the masses.
We have another spy action movie amongst us. Last one before this was Kate, that was another bland action-spy movie.
This offers absolutely NOTHING new to the table. We seen every trick this movie offer before. Over-skilled agents. Clever coreographed fight scenes, Trick tactics, agents with no names, An agency who elimintaes their own agents, expendable kill teams, plenty conspiracies and tons of action.
But i have to say i enjoy Gosling alone in this one. He plays it cool. Its just shame that he is backed up with a script littered with clichés from start to end.
We also have Ana De Armas who is fast becoming the new Tom Holland that appears everywhere. An actress that is milked trought the Hollywood system and spewed out to never be heard of again some day.
But the movie is for sure a worthy popcorn flick with no expetations to give. On a entertainment standpoint it delivers.