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.

 

Hell on Wheels 4.6: Bear and Sanity

Another outstanding Hell on Wheels tonight - 2.7, the second great standalone episode in a row - in which we see what happened to Elam after his battle with the bear.

First, he survives.  No surprise - Common is too excellent an actor and Elam too important and powerful a character to die.  In many ways, he's been the soul of the show.

But the way in which Elam survives was a sight and a story to behold.  Taken in, nearly dead, by the Comanches, a powerful Southern Plains tribe, Elam is nursed back to physical but not quite mental health by people who see his killing of the bear as endowing him with the bear's powers. The presentation of this part of the story was an anthropological tour-de-force, with the only language being spoken throughout most of it being Comanche, giving us the same total immersion in this situation as Elam.

His lack of touch with reality soon becomes clear.  He kills the kindly old trapper who tries to tell Elam who he really is.  He joins the Comanches in a raid on an advance U.S. cavalry party, only to kill one of the main Comanche warriors when they return to their main camp.

Elam's motive represents his one beacon of sanity - getting back to Eva. He first sees a white woman captive of the Comanches as his - in effect, his new Eva - but concludes that her suggestion that he take her back to civilization as the best way of re-uniting with Eva makes sense.   And so the episode ends with Elam, the white woman, and two Indian women Elam has also taken along with him looking at the train tracks.

Next week, we should be in for another superb episode as Elam finally gets back into contact with Cullen and all of our people in Cheyenne.   How long it will take them to be his people again should be another story to behold.   In the meantime, we were treated to one of the best Native American hours of television to come down the track in quite some time.

See also Hell on Wheels 4.1-2: Rolling Again ... Hell on Wheels 2.5: New Blood

And see also Hell on Wheels 3.1-2: Bohannan in Command ... Hell on Wheels 3.3: Talking and Walking ... Hell on Wheels 3.4: Extreme Lacrosse ... Hell on Wheels 3.5: The Glove ... Hell on Wheels 3.6: The Man in Charge ...Hell on Wheels 3.7: Water, Water ... Hell on Wheels 3.8: Canterbury Tales ...Hell on Wheels 3.9: Shoot-Out and Truths ... Hell on Wheels Season 3 finale: Train Calling in the Distance

And see also  Hell on Wheels: Blood, Sweat, and Tears on the Track, and the Telegraph ... Hell on Wheels 1.6: Horse vs. Rail ... Hell on Wheels 1.8: Multiple Tracks ... Hell on Wheels 1.9: Historical Inevitable and Unknown ... Hell on Wheels Season One Finale: Greek Tragedy, Western Style

 
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Hell on Wheels 4.1-2: Rolling Again

Hell on Wheels came back for its 4th Season Saturday before last, and has chugged in with two fine episodes.

Most appealing is Cullen's devotion to his new wife and baby.   Cullen's even sleeping with Naomi in season 3 was a breakthrough for the character, who was much more circumspect - and boring, in this regard - in previous seasons.   We could only assume that Cullen felt some kind of deep attraction to the Mormon farmer's daughter, and, if that was the case, it was satisfying and not surprising to see Cullen not only standing by but enjoying his new family in episodes 4.1-2.   (There's a new actress playing Naomi, but that's fine.)

Cullin's confrontation with the Swede ("I'm Norwegian!"), masquerading as the bishop he killed, was also satisfying.   As cannily demented and dangerous as the Swede is, he has never been a match for Cullen and his intelligence face to face.

The other big news in season 4 is Ulysses S. Grant's appointment of Campbell as provisional governor of Wyoming, the current forward point of the railroad.   Campbell is well-played by Jake Weber (last seen to good effect as Joe on Medium, and to not such good effect as a lunatic cult-leader on The Following), and the character will provide a good opponent to Durant, and likely Cullen as well, before this season is over.  Indeed, Durant will need Cullen to stand up to Campbell and his well-dressed men, the cutting violent edge of civilization.

One looming question is what happened to Elam, last seen at the end of season 3 on the wrong end of a bear.  We learn that his horse came back but not Elam, and since Common's name is not in the credits, it's not unreasonable to conclude that the bear consumed him.  However, I think Elam is far too important and powerful a character leave the series this way, or in any way at this point.   I'm looking forward to seeing Cullen go out and find him.

And I'm looking forward to this season of Hell on Wheels in any case.  The series continues to get better, was good in the first place, and is a pleasure to see.

See also Hell on Wheels 3.1-2: Bohannan in Command ... Hell on Wheels 3.3: Talking and Walking ... Hell on Wheels 3.4: Extreme Lacrosse ... Hell on Wheels 3.5: The Glove ... Hell on Wheels 3.6: The Man in Charge ...Hell on Wheels 3.7: Water, Water ... Hell on Wheels 3.8: Canterbury Tales ...Hell on Wheels 3.9: Shoot-Out and Truths ... Hell on Wheels Season 3 finale: Train Calling in the Distance

And see also  Hell on Wheels: Blood, Sweat, and Tears on the Track, and the Telegraph ... Hell on Wheels 1.6: Horse vs. Rail ... Hell on Wheels 1.8: Multiple Tracks ... Hell on Wheels 1.9: Historical Inevitable and Unknown ... Hell on Wheels Season One Finale: Greek Tragedy, Western Style

 
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