Ah, it’s good to be back. Along with me returning, I decided to bring back the old opening paragraph dialogues. I feel like they add more character to my reviews. Anyways, on with the review.
Red Sparrow is 2018 drama/thriller film directed by Francis Lawrence and stars Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton, Matthias Schoenaerts, and many more. The central plot of the film follows a ballerina who is recruited to Sparrow School—a Russian intelligence service—where she is forced to use her body as a weapon, with her first mission set to uncover a mole from within the nation’s government.
So to start things off I just wanted to give a little warning, as I have sat on this film for quite awhile. I guess you can say that my opinion of this film today is a little different from when I first walked out of the theater—but that honestly might be a good thing. Heck, look at my ratings for some of the films on here.. not really accurate. Anyways, this film definitely left me pretty entertained when walking out of the theater. But did that hold up?
In a sense it kind of did. Jennifer Lawrence has to be one of the best working actresses out there at the moment, and this movie just let her flex those skills. You really get to see her range in this movie, and although the Russian accent isn’t spot on, I feel like it’s still pretty believable. Joel Edgerton also does fairly well in this film although the movie doesn’t really give Edgerton the development that his character truly deserves. As for our other actors, I’d say that Matthias Schoenaerts was probably one of the most intriguing characters, not to mention this man was born to play a Russian. I’ll be honest, I can’t really tell if that that last statement is racist or not.
As for this film’s story—that’s where it kinda gets rough. Although the film has some great moments towards the end of it—it is a very slow paced film. Just like The Lost City of Z‘s turtle pacing, this film also takes its time in both good and bad ways. The first two thirds can be both confusing and dull at times, while also lacking meaningful narrative. Its final act is where this movie truly shines as all that build up finally pays off. If off course, you weren’t dozing off. It’s true that a strong final act does not equate to a strong movie overall, but in the case of Red Sparrow it seems that its finale is what makes it all worth it in the end.
A more stellar addition to this movie was this film’s score. Phenomenal. At this point James Newton Howard has solidified himself as one of the best working composers of our time. This film’s soundtrack is atmospheric, mood setting, and just so well written. I applaud this man for the millionth time for really giving his all with this film.
A rather consistent gripe that I and some of my friends faced was how Lawrence’s character portrayed her intentions. I felt that if this screenplay was directly adapted to a book—yes, I know that this film is based off a book—it would be told from either a third person or an omniscient point of view. Although a lot of novels and films use that viewpoint to their advantage, this film kind of suffers from that. I almost feel like I lose a sense of understanding with Lawrence’s character because of it. I want to understand her, but there is no assurance that what I’m thinking is exactly what she’s thinking. Now you might be saying,
“Zach, that’s the point. You’re not supposed to know what she thinks. And if you did then it would ruin the movie.” And in a sense you’re right. But the fact is that I have no emotional understanding of what she wants, and what she is thinking. I lose trust in her character as time goes on and she’s the main protagonist! You see the problem?
Other than some major pacing issues and a very strange way of providing character development, I honestly had a really good time with this film. It reminded me a lot of my overly praised Allied and The Lost City of Z. Sure this film was divisive with audiences, but that’s not the point. The film entertained me and surprised me in ways I truly wasn’t expecting. Were there parts that let me down? Of course. I also might have over hyped this film a little before its release, but I really did enjoy my time with Red Sparrow.
And with all that being said, I decided to give Red Sparrow a “Good” on theVade Review Bar. Although this film had a lot more potential than it ultimately finished with, it still finished pretty strong. The pacing and odd character development held it back from becoming something truly special—but its score, finale, and Lawrence’s performance is what really keeps Red Sparrow in the green here on theVade.
