Year of Release: 2020
Director: Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Dominique Fishback, Rodrigo Santoro, Courtney B. Vance, Amy Landecker, Machine Gun Kelly, Tait Fletcher, Allen Maldonado, Andrene Ward-Hammond, C.J. LeBlanc, Kyanna Simone Simpson
Genre: Action, Crime
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 3
Synopsis and Review:
I personally suspect Netflix is on the fast track to become a new version of The Cannon Studios film group. That studio became well known in the 1980s primarily for its robust output of B-movies, which they tried to diversify by producing some auteur driven endeavors, which included a few films by Andrei Konchalovsky (namely "Maria's Lovers", "Runaway Train" and "Shy People"), Robert Altman ("Fool for Love"), Emir Kusturica ("When Father Was Away on Business") and Barbet Schroeder ("Barfly"). Netflix keeps either producing or buying and then releasing a flurry of films where the quality is irregular, to say the least. "Project Power" hails from the directing duo of Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, a directing duo known for both "Nerve" and "Viral". The film focuses on the story of three central characters, all of whom clash in some way in the city of New Orleans. They all converge on this territory, since there's a new drug being tested in the city, one that gives people extraordinary powers, only for a limited amount of time, with the additional consideration, that the users never really know what the outcome of using that drug may be (it may be lethal for some). Robin is a young woman, a high school student, who sells those pills, in the hopes of making enough money, so she can help her mother with her medical bills. Frank is a police officer who is trying to solve the problems created by this drug, while also helping Robin, who works as an informant for him. Into the city comes Art, a former soldier, who is looking for his daughter, who was taken by the creators of that drug, and who knows a lot more about its genesis. These three have to work in tandem in order to stop the dissemination of the drug, but also save Art's daughter.
"Project Power" is a film with an interesting premise: characters ingest a drug, and become X-Men powered individuals for 5 minutes or so. The film however never really knows what approach to tackle when it comes to the material. On one hand, it aims for the gritty, "Training Day"/"The French Connection" angle, where it showcases the brutal aspects of both selling and using the drugs, while simultaneously it has influences from Michael Mann's "Miami Vice", in aesthetic and even in how it captures the relationship between some of the characters. As a social, grittier statement on the effects of drugs in society, it doesn't really work, since the characters are barely developed, and just illustrating some characters disintegrating doesn't make the film more meaningful. As far as being a take on the dynamics between these illustrious men, only trying to do what's best, it also never gels, since it ultimately feels rushed. What indeed makes this film watchable, is its talented cast, with Jamie Foxx, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rodrigo Santoro and Amy Landecker, trying to do the best they can with whatever they have. It's another forgettable endeavor from these directors.
"Project Power" is a film with an interesting premise: characters ingest a drug, and become X-Men powered individuals for 5 minutes or so. The film however never really knows what approach to tackle when it comes to the material. On one hand, it aims for the gritty, "Training Day"/"The French Connection" angle, where it showcases the brutal aspects of both selling and using the drugs, while simultaneously it has influences from Michael Mann's "Miami Vice", in aesthetic and even in how it captures the relationship between some of the characters. As a social, grittier statement on the effects of drugs in society, it doesn't really work, since the characters are barely developed, and just illustrating some characters disintegrating doesn't make the film more meaningful. As far as being a take on the dynamics between these illustrious men, only trying to do what's best, it also never gels, since it ultimately feels rushed. What indeed makes this film watchable, is its talented cast, with Jamie Foxx, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rodrigo Santoro and Amy Landecker, trying to do the best they can with whatever they have. It's another forgettable endeavor from these directors.
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