Atomic Blonde

Movie Name: Atomic Blonde
Year of Release: 2017

Director: David Leitch

Stars: Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, John Goodman, Sofia Boutella, Eddie Marsan, Toby Jones, James Faulkner, Bill Skarsgaard, Til Schweiger, Barbara Sukowa, Roland Moller, Sam Hargrave, Daniel Bernhardt

Genre: Action, Thriller

Score out of ten: 7
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Synopsis:

Another graphic novel series gets the big screen adaptation, this time around by the hand of David Leitch, the co-director of the celebrated "John Wick". The film follows the story of Lorraine Broughton, an MI6 agent, who is dispatched to Berlin, just as the wall is coming to an end in 1989. The remains of the Cold War persist, and Lorraine is tasked with getting a microfilm that has the information on all infiltrated agents, and also uncover the identity of a double agent who has brought a series of problems to the department. Lorraine is informed while being briefed, not to trust anyone, since there are multiple organizations looking for that list, and everyone is trying to get the upper hand while doing so. It's up to her and her skills, to navigate the tense political climate, and carry the mission to completion.
"Atomic Blonde" is a very entertaining film, one that is well aware of what is staging in terms of narrative and all the parts that comprise it. This is a well crafted and polished B-film, that has sufficient plot to keep the action going, but reserving a lot of its focus on the stylized look, the well placed soundtrack, and the impeccable action scenes that are choreographed to perfection. It also has a key success factor in the lead, the always fantastic Charlize Theron. She manages to create a lead character, who is simultaneously lethal, while retaining a sense of humanity and vulnerability, which makes Lorraine a far more compelling character than say, James Bond (who seems to be impervious to everything, therefore becoming more of a caricature, something that the "Naked Gun" films always spoofed so well). The supporting characters are not quite as compelling, or well rounded, and this is definitely not a John Le Carré adaptation (the plot is a bit wafer thin), but the film is impeccably conceived and directed, with a great production design from David Scheunemann and score from Tyler Bates. A very entertaining film worth watching.