by Josh Sewell
Matthew Vaughn, the filmmaker behind the Kingsman series and X-Men: First Class (arguably the best entry in the franchise), is back with Argylle, yet another spy caper. The genre is clearly a favorite of the director, and there’s no doubt he and the actors are having a blast in this silly, convoluted flick. Unfortunately, while there are quite a few bright spots throughout the exhausting 139-minute marathon, it ends up being a case of diminishing returns.
Argylle combines some old tropes and updates them for a new generation: a case of mistaken identity leads to an average Joe (or Jane, in this case) getting caught up in a crazy situation, but it turns out they’re more talented than they seem. Bryce Dallas Howard plays Elly Conway, reclusive author of a series of best-selling novels about a dashing spy (who looks a lot like Henry Cavill in her head). She prefers to spend her time at home with her laptop, a drink and her beloved cat Alfie.
However, when the plots of her books begin to mirror a covert espionage group’s real-life missions, her life gets a lot more exciting. Paired with Aidan (Sam Rockwell), a spy tasked with keeping her safe, Elly races around the world trying to elude assassins and solve the mystery behind the dangerous connection to her novels.
Look, I’ll be the first to admit that the main goal of Argylle is making sure the audience has a good time and gets plenty of laughs. Critiquing a movie like that feels like kicking a puppy – especially since the stellar cast leans into the ridiculous premise and hams it up accordingly. (And yet…)
Howard, Rockwell and Cranston are particularly delightful, hamming it up at every opportunity. But John Cena, Ariana DeBose, Dua Lipa, Catherine O’Hara and Samuel L. Jackson are also fun, despite most of them not getting a lot to do.
However, the plot – courtesy of screenwriter Jason Fuchs – is too thin to justify the aggressively overlong run time, which mostly consists of characters spouting absurd amounts of exposition and an overabundance of twists that ultimately keep viewers from caring about anything that happens. (Why devote emotional energy to a character’s arc when most of it will end up being reversed in a few minutes anyway?)
That’s fun for 90 minutes or so – in fact, that’s about how much time passed before I started checking my watch. However, when there’s still another hour to go, Argylle gets repetitive and exhausting fast.
There’s also an artificial sheen to the flick that initially seems to match what the story’s attempting to say about the duplicitous nature of humanity, how everyone is capable to pretending to be someone they’re not. However, the constant use of green screen becomes so obvious early on that it becomes distracting.
Even a scene where two characters have a conversation on the front porch of a quiet suburban home is crafted using visual fakery, despite the fact there’s no action or impossible feats involved. Was it to save money? Was the cast and crew running out of time? Were Covid protocols extra restrictive?
Who knows? Regardless of the reason behind the choice, the result is a world where nothing feels real, which means there’s nothing tangible for the audience to connect with. If it were one or two moments, the reliance on CGI might be easier to overlook. But when Vaughn is constantly assaulting the audience’s senses, some people are going to mentally check out as a defense mechanism.
Paradoxically, I could see Argylle working as a television series – although it wouldn’t have a cast of this caliber – because it would give viewers a break between episodes and the convoluted mythology would have time to build and breathe. However, when crammed together in this manner, it simultaneously feels like too much and not enough.
Argylle combines some old tropes and updates them for a new generation: a case of mistaken identity leads to an average Joe (or Jane, in this case) getting caught up in a crazy situation, but it turns out they’re more talented than they seem. Bryce Dallas Howard plays Elly Conway, reclusive author of a series of best-selling novels about a dashing spy (who looks a lot like Henry Cavill in her head). She prefers to spend her time at home with her laptop, a drink and her beloved cat Alfie.
However, when the plots of her books begin to mirror a covert espionage group’s real-life missions, her life gets a lot more exciting. Paired with Aidan (Sam Rockwell), a spy tasked with keeping her safe, Elly races around the world trying to elude assassins and solve the mystery behind the dangerous connection to her novels.
Look, I’ll be the first to admit that the main goal of Argylle is making sure the audience has a good time and gets plenty of laughs. Critiquing a movie like that feels like kicking a puppy – especially since the stellar cast leans into the ridiculous premise and hams it up accordingly. (And yet…)
Howard, Rockwell and Cranston are particularly delightful, hamming it up at every opportunity. But John Cena, Ariana DeBose, Dua Lipa, Catherine O’Hara and Samuel L. Jackson are also fun, despite most of them not getting a lot to do.
However, the plot – courtesy of screenwriter Jason Fuchs – is too thin to justify the aggressively overlong run time, which mostly consists of characters spouting absurd amounts of exposition and an overabundance of twists that ultimately keep viewers from caring about anything that happens. (Why devote emotional energy to a character’s arc when most of it will end up being reversed in a few minutes anyway?)
That’s fun for 90 minutes or so – in fact, that’s about how much time passed before I started checking my watch. However, when there’s still another hour to go, Argylle gets repetitive and exhausting fast.
There’s also an artificial sheen to the flick that initially seems to match what the story’s attempting to say about the duplicitous nature of humanity, how everyone is capable to pretending to be someone they’re not. However, the constant use of green screen becomes so obvious early on that it becomes distracting.
Even a scene where two characters have a conversation on the front porch of a quiet suburban home is crafted using visual fakery, despite the fact there’s no action or impossible feats involved. Was it to save money? Was the cast and crew running out of time? Were Covid protocols extra restrictive?
Who knows? Regardless of the reason behind the choice, the result is a world where nothing feels real, which means there’s nothing tangible for the audience to connect with. If it were one or two moments, the reliance on CGI might be easier to overlook. But when Vaughn is constantly assaulting the audience’s senses, some people are going to mentally check out as a defense mechanism.
Paradoxically, I could see Argylle working as a television series – although it wouldn’t have a cast of this caliber – because it would give viewers a break between episodes and the convoluted mythology would have time to build and breathe. However, when crammed together in this manner, it simultaneously feels like too much and not enough.
(Argylle is rated PG-13 for strong violence and action, and some strong language. Opens in theaters on February 2.)
Grade: C
Home Entertainment Spotlight
Thanksgiving
(Rated R for strong bloody horror violence and gore, pervasive language and some sexual material. Now available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.)
In this holiday-themed slasher from director Eli Roth, a mysterious killer terrorizes Plymouth, Massachusetts during Thanksgiving. Picking off residents (played by Patrick Dempsey, Addison Rae, Milo Manheim, Jalen Thomas Brooks, Nell Verlaque, Rick Hoffman and Gina Gershon) one by one, what begins as random revenge killings are soon revealed to be part of a larger, sinister plan. Special features include commentary with Roth and screenwriter Jeff Rendell; deleted and extended scenes; outtakes; behind-the-scenes featurettes; “Massachusetts Movies: Eli & Jeff’s Early Films”; and a digital copy of the movie.
Grade: C
Home Entertainment Spotlight
(Rated R for strong bloody horror violence and gore, pervasive language and some sexual material. Now available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital.)
In this holiday-themed slasher from director Eli Roth, a mysterious killer terrorizes Plymouth, Massachusetts during Thanksgiving. Picking off residents (played by Patrick Dempsey, Addison Rae, Milo Manheim, Jalen Thomas Brooks, Nell Verlaque, Rick Hoffman and Gina Gershon) one by one, what begins as random revenge killings are soon revealed to be part of a larger, sinister plan. Special features include commentary with Roth and screenwriter Jeff Rendell; deleted and extended scenes; outtakes; behind-the-scenes featurettes; “Massachusetts Movies: Eli & Jeff’s Early Films”; and a digital copy of the movie.
Reach out to Josh Sewell at joshsewell81@gmail.com
Comments
Post a Comment