In a world where the pandemic didn't exist, the 2020 summer movie season would be just past the halfway point. The likes of Black Widow, F9 and Top Gun: Maverick would already be out and the release of Tenet would be just a day away. Luckily, Netflix has arrived to fill the void left by the closure of movie theaters and subsequent delays of marquee titles by gifting the world with a much-needed dose of high quality blockbuster entertainment in The Old Guard that makes this unusual summer feel just a little bit more normal.
The Old Guard tells the story of a group of immortal warriors (Charlize Theron, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli) with regenerative healing abilities that covertly use their gifts to help people in need all over the world. Their centuries-old cover is blown after they're hired for a bogus mission in South Sudan by an ex-CIA operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) whose working for a young British pharmaceutical executive (Harry Melling) that intends to expose their condition to aid in the development of a miracle drug that would serve as a cure for all life-threating ailments that would earn him a historic payday. Further complications arise when the team becomes aware of a young American solider (KiKi Layne) that suffers from their affliction after she quickly recovers from getting her throat slit in combat and have to head to Afghanistan to retrieve her. With their anonymous existence suddenly destroyed and a skeptical new member-the first of which they've had in nearly 200 years-now in their ranks, these warriors are forced to prepare for their toughest battle to date.
What's cool about The Old Guard is that its really invested in exploring its characters. When you're working on a film that's designed to be part of a franchise (the graphic novel in which its based on is a trilogy), getting to know the protagonists is imperative to generate a hook that will get the viewers interested in this universe for the long-term and by using the introductory film to examine the emotional toll that comes with living forever, it allows a strong investment in these characters to be built right away. Scenes scattered throughout the narrative provide insight into how each individual on the team has dealt with their blessing/curse: Theron's Andy, who is the oldest of the group, questions whether or not their efforts are actually helping anyone, Schoenaerts' Booker remains haunted by watching his family slowly die over the years, Layne's Niles struggles to accept the solitary life she's suddenly forced to live as a result of her newly-discovered condition and the love that blossoms between Kenzari's Joe and Marinelli's Nicky gives them a positive outlook on their work and being alive for hundreds of years that starkly contrasts with the rest of the group. Pondering the existential burden that comes with living for so long and how every person is going to tackle that struggle differently wasn't something I really expected coming in, and writer Greg Rucka- who also penned the graphic novel series-deserves a lot of credit for bucking the genre norms by taking a solid chunk of time to explore the emotions of the story's heroes without ever detracting from the momentum of the primary plot.
At the end of the day, this is a film about badass soldiers who have been kicking ass on every continent for centuries and some strong character work wouldn't be enough to shield the presence of limp action sequences that didn't live up to the legendary reputations of these characters. With diverse fight choreography from Daniel Hernandez, a committed cast that did a good chunk of their own stunts and steady direction from Gina Prince-Bythewood (Beyond the Lights, Love & Basketball), all of the essential boxes on that front are defiantly checked.
Each action scene boasts a feeling of seemingly effortless fluidity that should be present in a movie that's centered around a team that's fought alongside each other tens of thousands of times. They're such a well-oiled machine that they can adjust on the fly to whatever their opponents throw at them (guns, fists, axes, swords, grenades) and snuff out on a whim when one of their own needs some help in taking down an enemy. It's kind of like watching the Globetrotters except instead of spinning basketballs on the fingers, "The Old Guard" can brutally dispatch a room full of people in 90 seconds or less with whatever's available to them. Staging action sequences that emphasize the dynamic combat gifts of the protagonists and just how much of a disadvantage their enemies are at regardless of what weapons they brandish or how extensive their training is goes in a long way in helping to sell the belief that the titular band of heroes are the most experienced, lethal warriors the world has ever seen.
The Old Guard is a terrific opening chapter in this likely franchise. It's another impressive example of a filmmaker who previously only made small-scale dramas seamlessly adapting to the world of blockbusters as well as the perfect antidote to this unusual summer slate that had been completely devoid of the massive, well-crafted fun movies that typically occupy this portion of the calendar up to this point. If the strong action/characterization balance can remain in tact for the future installments, The Old Guard could very well end up going down as a classic franchise.
The Old Guard tells the story of a group of immortal warriors (Charlize Theron, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli) with regenerative healing abilities that covertly use their gifts to help people in need all over the world. Their centuries-old cover is blown after they're hired for a bogus mission in South Sudan by an ex-CIA operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor) whose working for a young British pharmaceutical executive (Harry Melling) that intends to expose their condition to aid in the development of a miracle drug that would serve as a cure for all life-threating ailments that would earn him a historic payday. Further complications arise when the team becomes aware of a young American solider (KiKi Layne) that suffers from their affliction after she quickly recovers from getting her throat slit in combat and have to head to Afghanistan to retrieve her. With their anonymous existence suddenly destroyed and a skeptical new member-the first of which they've had in nearly 200 years-now in their ranks, these warriors are forced to prepare for their toughest battle to date.
What's cool about The Old Guard is that its really invested in exploring its characters. When you're working on a film that's designed to be part of a franchise (the graphic novel in which its based on is a trilogy), getting to know the protagonists is imperative to generate a hook that will get the viewers interested in this universe for the long-term and by using the introductory film to examine the emotional toll that comes with living forever, it allows a strong investment in these characters to be built right away. Scenes scattered throughout the narrative provide insight into how each individual on the team has dealt with their blessing/curse: Theron's Andy, who is the oldest of the group, questions whether or not their efforts are actually helping anyone, Schoenaerts' Booker remains haunted by watching his family slowly die over the years, Layne's Niles struggles to accept the solitary life she's suddenly forced to live as a result of her newly-discovered condition and the love that blossoms between Kenzari's Joe and Marinelli's Nicky gives them a positive outlook on their work and being alive for hundreds of years that starkly contrasts with the rest of the group. Pondering the existential burden that comes with living for so long and how every person is going to tackle that struggle differently wasn't something I really expected coming in, and writer Greg Rucka- who also penned the graphic novel series-deserves a lot of credit for bucking the genre norms by taking a solid chunk of time to explore the emotions of the story's heroes without ever detracting from the momentum of the primary plot.
At the end of the day, this is a film about badass soldiers who have been kicking ass on every continent for centuries and some strong character work wouldn't be enough to shield the presence of limp action sequences that didn't live up to the legendary reputations of these characters. With diverse fight choreography from Daniel Hernandez, a committed cast that did a good chunk of their own stunts and steady direction from Gina Prince-Bythewood (Beyond the Lights, Love & Basketball), all of the essential boxes on that front are defiantly checked.
Each action scene boasts a feeling of seemingly effortless fluidity that should be present in a movie that's centered around a team that's fought alongside each other tens of thousands of times. They're such a well-oiled machine that they can adjust on the fly to whatever their opponents throw at them (guns, fists, axes, swords, grenades) and snuff out on a whim when one of their own needs some help in taking down an enemy. It's kind of like watching the Globetrotters except instead of spinning basketballs on the fingers, "The Old Guard" can brutally dispatch a room full of people in 90 seconds or less with whatever's available to them. Staging action sequences that emphasize the dynamic combat gifts of the protagonists and just how much of a disadvantage their enemies are at regardless of what weapons they brandish or how extensive their training is goes in a long way in helping to sell the belief that the titular band of heroes are the most experienced, lethal warriors the world has ever seen.
The Old Guard is a terrific opening chapter in this likely franchise. It's another impressive example of a filmmaker who previously only made small-scale dramas seamlessly adapting to the world of blockbusters as well as the perfect antidote to this unusual summer slate that had been completely devoid of the massive, well-crafted fun movies that typically occupy this portion of the calendar up to this point. If the strong action/characterization balance can remain in tact for the future installments, The Old Guard could very well end up going down as a classic franchise.
Grade: A-
No comments:
Post a Comment