Atomic Blonde (2017)

Review by CJ

Director:
David Leitch

Starring:
Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, Eddie Marsan, John Goodman, Toby Jones

Other notable appearances:
James Faulkner, Sofia Boutella, Bill Skarsgård, Sam Hargrave, Til Schweiger

Running time:
115 minutes

Watch this if you liked:
Charlie’s Angels with less cheese, the James Bond series, Kingsman: The Secret Service

 

When a list naming all secret agents from all agencies — including a notorious double agent — is lost, it falls to MI6’s Lorraine Broughton (Theron) to recover it before the other agencies can.

Atomic Blonde is a fast-paced action flick that relies on brains but brings plenty of brawn to back it up.

Visually, Atomic Blonde flits between high in contrast and muted, sombre tones. Even the low-key tones often have a surreal quality to them. This makes Atomic Blonde an aesthetically fascinating film that feels straight out of a comic book. (Coincidentally, Atomic Blonde is based on the graphic novel The Coldest City by Antony Johnston, but the graphic novel only uses a black and white colour scheme.)

Atomic Blonde has a small main cast but they are talented and play their roles well.

Charlize Theron portrays Lorraine Broughton as sombre, strong and skilled. There are few actresses who could play this role and create a likeable character who feels human despite their detachment. Theron nails it.

I was first introduced to James McAvoy as Professor Xavier in X-Men: First Class where his character is a good soul who tries to see the best in everyone. After seeing his performances in Split and now Atomic Blonde, I greatly respect his range for playing less polished characters.

The ending is great. I won’t give anything away but I was very impressed with how Atomic Blonde concluded.

The music in Atomic Blonde, much like the lead female, kicks so much butt. As the film is set in 1989, there are plenty of retro classics that are sure to have you humming along. Well, they had me humming along anyway. You might have more restraint. Either way, it is a lot of 80s music that is positively brilliant as a soundtrack for this film.

If you love a good action thriller with plenty of spy action, Atomic Blonde is a great way to spend a couple of hours.

Rating:

“Don’t shoot, I’ve got your shoe!”