Review of Red Sparrow (2018) by Kcsimms — 06 Mar 2018

Like many others, I didn't know much about the film prior to seeing it. I was expecting a female driven James Bond espionage movie, but to my pleasure what I got was something entirely different. Red Sparrow is not an action-packed spy movie, but that doesn't mean it shies away from intense and brutal scenes.

The typical spy movie action that I'm referring to consists of chase scenes, drawn-out fight scenes, improbable stunts, and so on. This movie doesn't really possess any of those qualities. I know there was some controversy surrounding this movie.

Some were upset and under the impression that it was politically charged, while others thought the movie was misrepresented through advertisements. The movie was unexpected, but not in a bad way. I think that for people that expected and looked forward to a typical spy thriller were let down.

Also, I understand why some people thought the violence and nudity was gratuitous considering they were expecting something more appropriate. Personally, I didn't think the violence or nudity in this film was gratuitous by any means.

But I am someone who sees a lot of films from a broad spectrum, so it's hard for me to be offended by what I'm seeing. As far as the actual film goes, it was good. There were definitely some problems with the film as far as character development goes.

You have a hard time really understanding the protagonist, whether that's by design or not is unknown. The relationship between Jennifer Lawrence's character and Joel Egerton's character will create a lot of questions; it doesn't seem natural, and the chemistry just wasn't there.

The twist at the end is pretty good though, and was definitely the best part of the film. Well, that and Jennifer Lawrence's amazing acting yet again. I would recommend seeing this film.