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The screen’s rectangular shape appears to contort and contort into a smug smirk, thanks to director Matthew Vaughn’s overly confident storytelling. It’s as captivating as a cover shoot for a men’s magazine – shallow, weak, weighed down by a lackluster meta-story and unconvincing acting, and featuring a bland lineup of uninspired cameos from the supporting cast. Argylle is a high-concept idea with little substance, stuck in limbo between floors like an elevator. Vaughn is exhaustingly attempting to shoehorn it into the expanded universe of his other projects, making it more of a potential franchise than a meaningful piece of content.
In the past, I have enjoyed the bold and tasteless style of this director. It is not accurate to say that he can only direct masculine characters, as he successfully directed Chloë Grace Moretz in his superhero comedy Kick-Ass. However, in this film, he has somehow managed to produce a terrible lead performance from Bryce Dallas Howard, who plays spy novelist Elly Conway. Her characters closely resemble real people, but her portrayal falls flat. She appears stiff and uncomfortable, as if she is wearing crystal-clear contact lenses. This lifeless quality is not justified or excused by the script’s major twist. Vaughn and screenwriter Jason Fuchs fail to give this writer any humorous or engaging dialogue, and they struggle to incorporate her character into the film’s convoluted plot. However, it was clever of Vaughn and Fuchs to release a novelization supposedly written by “Elly Conway” herself this month.
The text introduces us to a skilled spy named Argylle, portrayed by Henry Cavill with a unique haircut and stylish jacket. He is joined by his colleagues Wyatt (John Cena) and Keira (Ariana DeBose) as they face off against LaGrange, a seductive assassin played by Dua Lipa. Alongside this action-packed plot, we also see the more ordinary life of Conway, a popular spy author who interacts with her fans at book readings and works on her latest novel in the “Argylle” series. She also has a tense conversation with her mother, Ruth (Catherine O’Hara), over Zoom about the book’s ending.
As she travels by train to visit her mother, a man named Aidan (played by Sam Rockwell) with wild hair and a grin sits down in the seat across from her. He claims to be her biggest admirer and reveals that he is a spy by profession. He also informs her that several influential and intimidating individuals in his line of work are intrigued by her unique ability to accurately anticipate their actions. Among these individuals is Mr. Ritter (portrayed by Bryan Cranston), the leader of a rebellious organization known as “The Division”.
This movie has the potential to be entertaining, however it is overly aware of itself and overly focused on praise. The important action scenes lose their impact by being portrayed on both a fictional and real level, ultimately negating each other. The idea of sequels for Argylle 2 and Argylle 3 is disheartening. Perhaps the books would fare better.
Source: theguardian.com
