Film ● Mini-Review: Canary Black
- Very Average Joe
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Title: Canary Black
Director(s): Pierre Morel
Screenwriter(s): Matthew Kennedy
Released: 2024
Runtime: 1h 41m
● Finally, Kate Beckinsale gets her Taken clone and that is pretty much the only reason one would watch this.
● Beckinsale plays CIA operative Avery Graves. One day, her husband is kidnapped and she has merely hours to retrieve a top-secret file that the CIA is in possession of or else he dies.
● The film has all the usual elements: Graves is the highly capable operative, her boss Jarvis (Ray Stevenson) tries to protect her, the CIA obviously has something nefarious planned, the CIA’s enemies supposedly want it, and there is some mystery operative/assassin who has somehow kept his identity hidden.
● The plot and pacing are standard for the sub-genre: fast enough but on autopilot.
● Beckinsale’s gun handling skills from Underworld are still apparent. It would be cool to see her up her skills to a level closer to John Wick.
● The action scenes are not always well edited, trying to mask the lack of real physicality. This is most apparent in the opening sequence. I am not sure if this is due to Beckinsale’s age and/or liability issues. (I am not implying she’s too old.)
● To be fair, she can still run mostly like she used to; it may look awkward but it seems to be those ridiculous heels and this is one of those practical decisions in which the director and/or producers could do better. Just let her run in more comfortable shoes.
● There are no substantial wow moments or twists. It is a straightforward Taken clone and not a particularly good one. Beckinsale, as expected, mostly sells it, as does Stevenson in one of his last roles. It is a shame because both deserve better and are more than capable of pulling it off if given the opportunity.
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