Film Review – The 355 (2022)

2022, welcome y’all. With the madness of end-of-year lists just about behind us, thoughts turn to the fresh twelve months ahead of us and what wonders await but the start of this New Year was always going to be a slow burner. After the deluge of films that raced to get released after being delayed due to the pandemic (which is still going on, don’t forget), the usual January lull is here in even greater force, the annual dumping ground for films that studios may not feel too confident in or have had multiple delays. And so, first out of the blocks is The 355, which on the face of it ticks all the boxes described above but it isn’t quite as painful an experience as you might be betting for. But only just.

When a new weapon of mass destruction gets into the wrong hands – one that could bring about World War III through the power of technology – CIA Agent Mason Browne (Jessica Chastain) is forced to work “off-grid” and enlists the help of former associate Khadijah (Lupita Nyong’o) to retrieve it but despite their best efforts, it eludes them. Along the way, they join forces with German BND Agent Marie (Diane Kruger), psychologist Graciela (Penelope Cruz), and Chinese MSS Agent Lin (Fan Bingbing) as they get closer to the asset and expose the corruption that may take down some paths that lead closer to home than they realise.

We can say this for certain: The 355 is a better directing calling card for Simon Kinberg than his previous effort, the disastrous final X-Men film Dark Phoenix, the final nail in the franchise’s coffin, although not wholly his fault. Taking his cue from his producing career with Doug Liman, Matthew Vaughn, and Ridley Scott, there’s a gritty realism to proceedings here that while it’s largely unoriginal, does a better job at orchestrating and choreographing its fight sequences than many similar big-budget efforts have been able to in recent years, mostly thanks to Tim Maurice-Jones’ furious camerawork that frames each set-piece rather well. Indeed, going hand-in-hand (!) from the bruising cinematography is that all the cast (seemingly) throw themselves into the stunt work to add another layer of authenticity which, for the most part, works a treat.

What ultimately lets the film down is its narrative. We can only applaud the filmmakers for stepping out of the norm and having a female-centric action espionage thriller that we so rarely these days (big shame) but once you get under the surface, its narrative is derivative and shoddy, almost playing like a greatest hits of every Bond, Bourne, Mission, Angels and almost everything in between with sign-posted, predictable twists and plot points taken from the espionage playbook. Of course, the layers of female empowerment, and sexual equality bring a freshness to proceedings but aren’t enough to make for a wholly satisfying package. That said, and despite its shortcomings, it’s nigh-on impossible to put this cast together and get something truly awful and with Chastain and Cruz leading the way, they do just enough to keep things ticking along just enough to keep you entertained.

★★

Action, Thriller | 2021 | 15 | Universal Pictures, Focus Features | Dir: Simon Kinberg | Jessica Chastain, Penelope Cruz, Diane Kruger, Lupita Nyon’g’o, Fan Bingbing, Edgar Ramirez, Jason Flemyng and Sebastian Stan