Atomic Blonde (2017, R)

On the whole, I’d put this Cold War-era action flick at maybe a B or B+, but I’m still very satisfied with having seen it in theaters.  While the story doesn’t always quite stick the landing, the bold tone and high-octane fight scenes make it a rollicking good time.

In the last days before the Berlin Wall comes down, MI-6 agent Lorraine is sent into the city.  Ostensibly, it’s to recover the body of a deceased fellow agent, but really, it’s to retrieve a document containing intel on all the major spy players on both sides of the Iron Curtain.  Traveling back-and-forth between the two halves of the city with the KGB out for her blood, a mysterious woman tailing her, and MI-6’s volatile man on the ground advising her on the ways of Berlin, Lorraine doesn’t know who, if anyone, she can trust – other than her highly-capable self, of course.

First of all, let me say, I love the late ‘80s setting – most Cold War spy stuff I’ve seen is set earlier than that, and combining spooks with ‘80s fashions and music is so much fun.  The film has a great sense of style and swagger, a little cheeky at times.  There are moments when I think the direction is a bit too hyper-stylized, like when the camera revolves sideways for no particular reason, but overall, I enjoy it.  The story, as I said, is a little shakier.  The twists and turns of the plot feel a little played-out to me, and more than anything, it’s clear that it’s all just backdrop for the crazy action sequences.

Which are many and varied.  I love watching Charlize Theron’s Lorraine throw down.  She’s both brutal and resourceful, using anything to her advantage against male agents who are bigger than her, and she takes as many hard hits as she dishes out.  There’s a nice mix between sleek and stylish moves (like Lorraine escaping a set-upon apartment using what looks like a power cable) and more down-and-dirty fighting (like Lorraine and a KBG agent whose fight ends without fanfare as both stagger, concussed, toward one another for one last bout.)  I also like that, while Lorraine is obviously a beautiful woman who uses that to her advantage in her work and the camera pays plenty of attention to her style, her fight scenes really aren’t about the male gaze.

As Lorraine, Theron is cool, dry, and again, a licensed badass.  James McAvoy is highly watchable as her MI-6 colleague David – as the higher-ups put it, he’s “gone native” and given himself over to the end-of-the-world feel to Berlin’s party scene, and he’s altogether an unstable element weaving in and out of Lorraine’s mission.  I always enjoy Sofia Boutella (who first caught my attention as Gazelle in Kingsman,) and she has a nice appearance here, although I wish we could’ve seen her fight more.  The film also features the always-reliable Toby Jones and John Goodman.

Warnings

Tons of violence, swearing, sexual content (including brief nudity,) and drinking/smoking.