Ok, I've read lots of the reviews here (both positive and negative), and here are my thoughts with about a half-hour left to go in my initial viewing of this film (which is another in the free offerings from Kanopy, the movie app available on your smart TV that is sponsored by your local Public Library at no cost to you if you have a library card): first, I understand the complaint several folks had about the opening credits, which show satellite images of an explosion purportedly in Turkey, yet the eye-in-the-sky shot clearly shows the explosion taking place somewhere else in the Middle East...causing some reviewers to lament the ignorance of the presumably American filmmakers for not knowing where Turkey is. I believe the truth on this point is either, A) yes, the filmmakers are inconsiderate morons, or (and more likely), B) what we're witnessing here is one of the occasionally unfortunate byproducts of modern filmmaking, where an SFX team was hired to provide satellite images of an explosion in the Middle East, without the producers of the film having yet decided exactly "where" that explosion was to have taken place - a not altogether uncommon situation in the production of films, regardless of their country of origin.
Next, some reviewers have claimed the film's main villain isn't very scary...well, he seems pretty darn scary to me, and I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this point.
Now, as to those who feel this movie is yet another nail in the coffin of men being the action heroes of movies, with women taking over the role they once held; okay, yes, the heroine in this film does play an important role (remember, I've yet to see the ending), but the background they've given her as a whip-smart CIA analyst is the primary skill set she has displayed so far, and if the movie ends with her beating the crap out of the main bad guy - whom I've already proclaimed to BE a really BAD guy, then maybe I'll swing the other way on this point. But those of you who used to read books (like me) before we let movies become pretty much our sole entertainment medium, may recall the classic by John Steinbeck called "The Grapes of Wrath", and will remember how control of the Joad family was eventually ceded to Ma Joad, as Pa had been so beat down by Life that she had no choice but to take over. So, I'm just saying this isn't a 2022 phenomenon, and besides that, lighten up a little, and admit that sometimes women will be smarter and even tougher (emotionally and yes, even physically) than men, and that we should consider ourselves, no matter our gender, as members of the same team, guys!
Okay, time to finish the movie, I just wanted to address those few points before I pass out (it's my day off tomorrow, and the gin has been flowing rather freely this evening!)
******
Alright, the end credits are rolling, and while our heroine did manage to "best" the Bad Guy, she did it with a gun, at close range, so I don't see anything so very unbelievable about that. And yes, the end of the film clearly sets us up for a sequel which promises to have her ferreting out the CIA rat who ordered the air strike responsible for the deaths of her husband and daughter, which I'd be happy to see someday!
So, all in all, a very exciting and fun watch, filled with heroic (and despicable) exploits by both men and women, and very well filmed (some reviews had led me to believe the movie would mostly take place in dark, shadowy corridors), so I'm giving this an easy 7 stars, and encourage anyone who likes action movies to give this one a try.... Peace! MFF/Honolulu 8-31-22.
Next, some reviewers have claimed the film's main villain isn't very scary...well, he seems pretty darn scary to me, and I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this point.
Now, as to those who feel this movie is yet another nail in the coffin of men being the action heroes of movies, with women taking over the role they once held; okay, yes, the heroine in this film does play an important role (remember, I've yet to see the ending), but the background they've given her as a whip-smart CIA analyst is the primary skill set she has displayed so far, and if the movie ends with her beating the crap out of the main bad guy - whom I've already proclaimed to BE a really BAD guy, then maybe I'll swing the other way on this point. But those of you who used to read books (like me) before we let movies become pretty much our sole entertainment medium, may recall the classic by John Steinbeck called "The Grapes of Wrath", and will remember how control of the Joad family was eventually ceded to Ma Joad, as Pa had been so beat down by Life that she had no choice but to take over. So, I'm just saying this isn't a 2022 phenomenon, and besides that, lighten up a little, and admit that sometimes women will be smarter and even tougher (emotionally and yes, even physically) than men, and that we should consider ourselves, no matter our gender, as members of the same team, guys!
Okay, time to finish the movie, I just wanted to address those few points before I pass out (it's my day off tomorrow, and the gin has been flowing rather freely this evening!)
******
Alright, the end credits are rolling, and while our heroine did manage to "best" the Bad Guy, she did it with a gun, at close range, so I don't see anything so very unbelievable about that. And yes, the end of the film clearly sets us up for a sequel which promises to have her ferreting out the CIA rat who ordered the air strike responsible for the deaths of her husband and daughter, which I'd be happy to see someday!
So, all in all, a very exciting and fun watch, filled with heroic (and despicable) exploits by both men and women, and very well filmed (some reviews had led me to believe the movie would mostly take place in dark, shadowy corridors), so I'm giving this an easy 7 stars, and encourage anyone who likes action movies to give this one a try.... Peace! MFF/Honolulu 8-31-22.