by Charles Kirkland Jr.
When her husband is kidnapped, Agent Graves is forced to fight her agency and steal a file known as Canary Black.
Agent Graves is the best retrieval agent in the CIA. She retrieves the requested information on each assignment, complete with body count if necessary, and returns to her idyllic home and her husband David who has no idea of her job. After one particularly hairy assignment, Graves returns home to find her husband kidnapped. Before she can do anything, the kidnapper call and onstructs her to retrieve a blackmail file called Canary Black.
Written by Michael Kennedy, Canary Black stars Kate Beckinsale, Ray Stevenson, Rupert Friend, Jaz Hutchins, Ben Miles and Goran Kostic. It is directed by Pierre Morel.
Everything about this movie falls in the wheelhouse of its director. Morel, who directed District B13 and the first Taken, has a reputation with these sort of revenge action films where the hero has to take on great odds and even greater organizations. He even has experience with women as the lead directing Jennifer Garner in Peppermint.
Beckinsale has a lot of experience in action movies too. After starring in the Underworld series, among other films, Beckinsale should have a good familiarity with being the lead in an action movie.
Despite experience and pedigree, Canary Black is a lackluster and unimaginative movie experience. The action is not choreographed well. There is poor gunplay and unimpressive fights scenes. The problem is that we have seen Beckinsale’s abilities displayed so much more interestingly in the past that this performance pales in comparison.
The way the film is made it seems like this could be a franchise in the making. Unfortunately, if the first movie is any indication, this should be a one and done.
Rated R for violence and language, Canary Black is not really worth the time. It feels the same as every other cheesy spy/assassin movie where the leader has to take on their agency, just not as fun. Thank goodness it is streaming, you might feel cheated if you pay for it.
Canary Black can be seen on Amazon Prime starting October 25, 2024.
Grade: D+