Despite the plot seeming a little common for the genre, this movie is able to capture the essence of what a spy movie is, filling this two hour long set with twists, small details and awesome fight scenes. You will feel confused – in a good way -, as in this movie no one is genuine, yet everyone gives little drops of truth in an attempt to keep their cover, save their assess and be helpful when it comes to resolving this situation. The plot is actually developed while we watch Lorraine be interrogated after it all happened, so we also discover why she ends up in that situation while we watch the plot, something that at first I didn’t like but ended up growing on me. Also, as you may notice, there’s a lot going on at the same time in this movie, so you maybe want to keep your eyes glued to the screen, or even watch it twice because there are things you can definitively miss or not really get on the first view.
The movie is mostly well adapted to the late 80s and delivers some really good visuals that contrast between predominant cold looking scenes and scenes full of neon purple or red lights. The change between predominant colours, camera movements and spaces used to leave no room for boredom and make the movie flow in a nice way. The soundtrack is also good, with some big names like Queen and David Bowie.
Talking about memorable scenes, Charlize Theron stands out in her performance, making Lorraine a mysterious, tough and independent woman. She also shows a range that goes from vulnerable to fierce, always being realistic. Unfortunately, she completely shadows James McAvoy performance as David Percival, who ends up being a disappointing and a plain character that should’ve delivered more, both in the acting and plot sides.
Atomic Blonde is not a transcendental movie, but a good movie to spend your time if you like thrillers with some action or movies inspired in the past decades.
Peter Fletcher
Action, Thriller | USA, 2017 | 15 | 4th December 2017 (UK DVD) | Universal Pictures | Dir.David Leitch | Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, James Goodman, Eddie Marsan, Toby Jones, Sofia Boutella | Buy:Blu-Ray + Digital Download
Special Features
* Commentary with director David Leitch
* Deleted Scenes
* Anatomy of a Fight Scene
* Blondes Have More Gun
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