The Mosley Review: The Old Guard
I've said it before and I'll say it again: I love action films! Action in film nowadays has evolved to the point where we actually see more actors and actresses doing the fighting on screen and almost all of the stunts. It’s hard work and it shows the dedication. The story hasn't always been the driving force behind the mayhem. It has often been very simple, shallow or an after thought. I liked that right from the beginning the film delivers a concept that has often been theorized about, but now it has been fully fleshed out. I've never heard of or read the graphic novel this film is adapted from, but I’m definitely gonna pick up a copy. There were a few times where I thought the pacing was a bit off and inconsistent. It was a tight story with obvious twists and turns, but there are still plenty of surprises. There are 3 different types of action films that I consider to be the easiest to decide which ones are the best to revisit. Inventive, Middle Ground and Bin Surfers are what I gauge them by and well this film straddles between 2 of those classifications.
Charlize Theron has had a career that spans from leading love interest, to dramatic powerhouse and now she has solidified herself as a natural badass heroin. As Andy / Andromache of Scythia, she delivers a excellent level of cool and confidence on screen that doesn't fall into "I'm acting stoic and badass to be cool" stereotype. She just IS a badass. Charlize delivers her trademarks as a leading lady that can carry a film and wonderfully shows the vulnerable side of Andy underneath her tough shell. KiKi Layne was good as Nile Freeman and she walks us through what it’s like to find out you're an immortal. I liked how she was trying to figure out how to live a normal life and through her, you learn the new rules of life as an immortal. The rest of Andy's immortal team were great. Matthias Schoenaerts was cool as Booker / Sebastian Le Livre and I loved his easy going manner. Marwan Kenzari and Luca Marinelli as Joe / Yusuf Al-Kaysani and Nicky / Nicoló di Genova were fantastic and I loved their chemistry. You truly feel the love between them that has lasted ever since the crusades. Chiwetel Ejiofor is always fantastic in everything and he was just that as former CIA Agent James Copley. Harry Melling was perfectly soulless, selfish and inhumane as the greedy pharmaceutical CEO Steven Merrick. He's your stereotypical villain, but he was great either way.
The score by Volker Bertelmann and Dustin O'Halloran was good when it was more prevalent. Like some other action films, the film uses songs that illustrate the tone, inner feelings of a character or just flat out tell you where the film is headed. This was fun for a few scenes, but was jarring towards the last half of the film. There's a fight scene in a small church and a song is used there and that is where it should've stopped. I felt that the last 30 minutes of the film dragged on and there is a moment where a character becomes vulnerable and you feel the sense that they might not make it, but that tension is quickly erased. Missed opportunity if you ask me. Where I would classify this film in my action film gauge is right inbetween Inventive and Middle Ground. It had some great action and inventive sequences, but the story bogged down to the middle ground towards the last half of the film. I still say its a fantastic action film that should not be missed. The film is a Netflix original and it is now streaming.
