BASED on the marketing, you might think Henry Cavill and Dua Lipa are the stars of Argylle. But make no mistake: Bryce Dallas Howard is the unequivocal star of Kingsman director Matthew Vaughn’s new spy thriller. Turns out, she’s a pretty bad-a$$ action hero to boot.Don’t be fooled by what you may have read on social media either.
No, Taylor Swift did not write the movie’s source material. That much becomes obvious fairly quickly as Swift has never written anything as un-serious and ridiculous as the film’s James Bond-on-steroids-esque opening scene (though ME! comes close). Besides, Vaughn has already put that rumour to bed.
But neither A. nor B. should preclude you from seeing Argylle. The film is a wild ride full of twists and turns that keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat until the end.
How do you describe a movie that’s essentially one spoiler after the other? This much we can tell you: Howard is Elly Conway, the reclusive author of a best-selling series of espionage novels about a super spy named Argylle (Cavill in a bespoke suit and bad haircut), his sidekicks Wyatt (John Cena) and Keira (Ariana DeBose), and their nemesis LaGrange (Lipa).
Elly’s quiet life is turned upside down when the events in her latest novel start to mirror real life. Suddenly, she and her trusty cat, Alfie (Chip), become the targets of an intense international manhunt led by Ritter (Bryan Cranston), the leader of an evil covert spy organisation who desperately needs to know how the book ends.
Luckily, she’s got a good spy named Aidan (Sam Rockwell), the former head of the CIA (Samuel L. Jackson) and her mom (Catherine O’Hara) on her side.
Or does she? This thing is like the feature-length version of that "Surprise Surprise" meme on TikTok.
Indeed, Jason Fuchs’ audacious script, based on a book by someone also named Elly Conway and who is quite possibly made up, is almost too clever for its own good.
The film struggles at times trying to simultaneously parody the spy genre and tell an engaging story about a woman in search of herself through the fantastical tales and larger-than-life characters she’s created.
But the charming and relatable Howard and Rockwell’s smooth-talking scoundrel keep things grounded with their performances. Who knew they’d be the new Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas?
Vaughn also does an effective job of revealing the movie’s secrets at a measured pace and taking the audience inside Elly’s head as she is literately thrown into this extraordinary adventure. Cavill is particularly game in the role of her subconscious.
But nuance and subtlety were never really Vaughn’s thing. So, nearly two hours in, the Kick-Ass director delivers what we’ve come to expect from him: a bonkers finale containing some of the most inventive and, frankly, weirdest action sequences you might see all year.
Not to give too much away, but think murder mayhem combined with a choreographed romantic dance and oil skating. Your results may vary, but I bought it.
That goes for the rest of the film, including the big reveal of Agent Argylle’s true identity, which may or may not satisfy depending on how much thought you put into it beforehand.
But, man, this movie is a time! It’s outlandish and over-the-top, yet genuinely funny and oddly moving, too. And did I mention the cat? For anyone who’s immersed themselves in the Oscar-baity issue movies and biopics of the last two months, Argylle is the perfect palette cleanser. Sometimes unserious and ridiculous is a good thing. — Tribune News Service
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Summary:
A wild ride full of twists and turns
