Ava: Believable Assassin

Checking in with a review of Ava, a relatively new movie (September 20) about a female assassin which just went up on Netflix last week.

First of all, it has some real star power: Jessica Chastain as the assassin, John Malkovich, Common, and Colin Farrell in her supporting cast.  Now, they've been any number of atrocious movies with big stars over the years.  But Ava isn't among them.  It's a pretty good movie, lifted by the likes of just hearing Malkovich talk.

And the fight scenes are good.  I don't know, are there assassins of either gender in real life who can take on and out 20 people coming at you?  Probably not.  But Ava was convincing.

And so was the worn narrative of your own organization turning against you, because you some sort of weak spot (in Ava's case, talking to the mark about why he or she thought Ava was about to kill them).  This narrative was convincing as soon as it got to the point where you couldn't tell who was going to survive or not, and when.  This included the effective question mark at the very end.

So, if you're up for a somewhat offbeat assassin movie, with characters who manage to be believable because of acting more than the script, give Ava a shot.   And make sure no one like her gets too close to you in real life.

 

True Detective 2.2: Pulling a Game of Thrones?

I think the killing of Ned at the end of the first season of Game of Thrones, combined with the fact that its excellent ratings subsequently increased, has forever changed television.  Well, certainly the kind of superb television we've been seeing since The Sopranos on HBO, and soon after on Showtime, AMC, Starz, and now Netflix and Amazon streaming, as well.

But the problem with successful innovation is that you need to out-innovate the original innovation if the successor shows are to be as successful as the original. Which brings me to last night's True Detective 2.2 on HBO.

In the two episodes - including last night's - in which we were introduced to and got to know him, Ray was an interesting, provocative character, with all kinds of narrative potential.  Further, he was played by Colin Farrell.  So ... why kill him?

The usual provisos apply.  Maybe he's not dead.  We didn't see his head blown to bits in front of our eyes.  But those two shotgun blasts sure look that they did more than enough bodily damage to kill him.

But, ok, if Ray survives this, I take back everything I'm going to say, which is based on the assumption that he does not.  Why kill such a character?  Obviously to make a point that nothing is sacred in what television narrative has become, including a great character played by a talented actor killed almost right off the bat, actually not quite off the bat, but after we were beginning to fully go with him as a primary protagonist, which makes this even more striking. I guess this is a good lesson. Certainly it will keep viewers on their toes, and punish any who dozed off before the end of the episode, or missed it entirely, and read what happened to Ray in some online review such as this.

Do I like this new kind of television? I guess so, probably, I'm not sure.  But at this point, rather than passing judgement on it, I'm just noting it here - and saying I'll definitely keep watching, which probably means the ending of last night's episode did its job, though I'm sure I would have kept watching this season of True Detective anyway.

See also Season Two: True Detective: All New

And see also Season One: True Detective: Socrates in Louisiana ... True Detective Season One Finale: Light above Darkness

 
Like philosophic crime fiction?   Try The Plot to Save Socrates ...

#SFWApro

True Detective: All New

True Detective was back for its second season on HBO with last night, with no connection to the first season, except this second season looks like it could be almost as outstanding.

Colin Farrell plays Ray, a detective in the pocket of an LA hood, Vince Vaughn's Frank, for essentially very personal reasons.  The question, as it always is in these circumstances, is how much in the pocket - and what, if anything, will pull Ray out of it.

Rachel McAdams plays Ani, who at this point appears to be a much truer - i.e., non-crooked - detective than does Ray.   It's good to see a woman in this spot, and a welcome departure from season 1, in which the woman were mostly victims, with an unsympathetic wife and a prostitute thrown in.

Taylor Kitsch - a lot older than he looked in his superb Tim Riggins role in the late lamented Friday Night Lights - is the fourth major star, playing Paul of the California Highway Patrol, with his own host of problems, including a dangerous obsession with his motorcycle.

In short, this really is a brand new tableau, with new characters, pace, as well as story.  There is at least a flashback or two showing how Ray became indebted to Frank, but even that seems much less dominating that the relentless but highly effective flashes backwards and forwards and all through time in the first season.

Look, it's hard to imagine anyone in this season putting in as quietly searing a performance as Matthew McConaughey did in the first season - one of the best ever on television and of his distinguished career - but this second season is off to a good start, and I'm looking forward to more.

See also Season One: True Detective: Socrates in Louisiana ... True Detective Season One Finale: Light above Darkness

 
Like philosophic crime fiction?   Try The Plot to Save Socrates ...

#SFWApro