Yes, this film is heavily flawed, especially in this genre's cliched-riddled writing department, but was it fun? Was is watchable? Were there impressive and expensive sets and locations? Did Wonder Woman's Gal Gadot deliver the high-octane convincing action? Absolutely yes to all. Especially when you consider the latest A-list female lead action films that have come out lately, such as The Mother with J-Lo, and Ghosted with Ana de Armas, that were all disappointing and cringeworthy flops.
And let's be honest, as cliched, generic and predictable as this was, it's not far off from the same tropes and use of "AI will rule the world in the wrong hands" theme in the latest Mission Impossible, of which was my least favorite of that franchise. Sure Tom Cruise did his own stunts jumping off a cliff on a motorcycle, so more props to him and less to Gadot for all her impressive action scenes that were stunt-doubles or computer generated - in the end, the wow factor is equally still there in the action department.
But both films suffered the same generic cliched writing, this one has just a little more cheese in it's dialogue and writing, but at least it didn't have a Part 2 cliffhanger. I gave M. I. an 8/10, and feel very comfortable giving this one with similar action and similar writing, but not as good directing a 7/10, mostly all going to Gadot for being the first female lead in this genre to convince me she needs to be in this franchise. Hopefully if there are more Stone films to come, there will be better filmmakers attached to them.
And let's be honest, as cliched, generic and predictable as this was, it's not far off from the same tropes and use of "AI will rule the world in the wrong hands" theme in the latest Mission Impossible, of which was my least favorite of that franchise. Sure Tom Cruise did his own stunts jumping off a cliff on a motorcycle, so more props to him and less to Gadot for all her impressive action scenes that were stunt-doubles or computer generated - in the end, the wow factor is equally still there in the action department.
But both films suffered the same generic cliched writing, this one has just a little more cheese in it's dialogue and writing, but at least it didn't have a Part 2 cliffhanger. I gave M. I. an 8/10, and feel very comfortable giving this one with similar action and similar writing, but not as good directing a 7/10, mostly all going to Gadot for being the first female lead in this genre to convince me she needs to be in this franchise. Hopefully if there are more Stone films to come, there will be better filmmakers attached to them.