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SHADOW FORCE (2025) Director: Joe Carnahan Cast: Kerry Washington, Omar Sy, Jahleel Kamara, Mark Strong, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Cliff "Method Man" Smith, Marshall Cook, Ed Quinn, Marvin Jones III, Jénel Stevens-Thompson, Scala Baker, Natalia Reyes, Yoson An MPAA
Rating: Running Time: 1:44 Release Date: 5/9/25 |
Review by Mark Dujsik | May 9, 2025 Shadow Force has a heart to it, which is surprising to say about a movie that revolves around two reformed assassins trying to kill a bunch of people before those people can kill them. Between the chases and shootouts, the story of co-writer/director Joe Carnahan's movie is about a family, and in its quiet moments, we might actually believe the movie cares about that idea, too. It has that core, at least, because the plot is thin and stretched out to point of breaking, the action isn't particularly strong or coherent when it does arrive, and the tone is clearly divided between the three major parties of this story that there's not much consistency there, either. Still, there are scenes that are kind of sweet and a family unit that, despite the complications raised by the entire premise, feels sincere. It's something. The family consists of Kyrah (Kerry Washington), Isaac (Omar Sy), and their 5-year-old son Ky (Jahlell Kamara). At the moment, Isaac is essentially a single father, making sure that his son is cared for, loved, and protected. That last part is especially important—and not simply because an early scene has the two caught up in the middle of a bank robbery. One of the thieves makes the gigantic mistake of pointing a gun at Ky, leading Isaac to take all of the robbers out with such speed and precision that his actions seem to break the editing of the movie. It's an intentional choice on Carnahan's part, obviously, although that doesn't necessarily excuse how choppy some of the other action sequences can come across later on here. No, Isaac needs to protect Ky, because he and Kyrah are currently being hunted by Jack Cinder (Mark Strong), a former CIA head who started a clandestine group of assassins known—or, better, not known—as Shadow Force. The couple was part of it once, but after falling in love and having a child together, the two decided that leaving that world of government murder-for-hire was the only way to stay together and keep their son safe. Jack offers all of that back story, by the way, in a speech to a group of politicians from around the world, since he's currently in the running for a cushy gig and under investigation for his secretive operations. The scene almost feels as if it was added during post-production, lest anyone in the audience become confused about what's happening in this very simple plot. The turning point of the script (co-written by Leon Chills) is that, because of his takedown of the bank robbers, Isaac is back on Jack's radar, and since the two betrayed their oath to Shadow Force, Jack wants the two killed. Kyrah, meanwhile, has spent a few years hunting and killing other members of Shadow Force before they can find her and her family, so the several surviving members have a personal vendetta against their former comrades. Oh, Jack was also in love with Kyrah, so he has a grudge, too. Jack is the generically diabolical villain (meaning Strong gets to sink his teeth into that kind of role yet again), so all of his scenes are filled with calm menace or him taking out his frustrations on his right-hand men. There's also another couple here in Auntie (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) and Unc (Cliff "Method Man" Smith), a pair of CIA spies who keep Kyrah abreast of any developments in the search for her and Isaac. Their scenes are played entirely for comedy, even when Isaac, who suspects they may have betrayed him and his family, interrogates the two at gunpoint. The pair are, admittedly, kind of amusing (Randolph gets a lot of mileage out of her understated delivery), although that mode undercuts a lot of the stakes here, particularly during a climactic showdown that figuratively and literally doesn't have much room to make that many tonal and physical moves, since the script somehow crams every character of any note into a small space. Ignoring all of that for a moment, the central relationships feel genuine. There's the bond between Isaac and Ky, which is given a lot of room to breathe during the first act and pays off with that moment when the father reveals just how far he's willing to go to protect his son. When the on-the-run couple reunites, it's with an awkward and somewhat uncomfortably brutal fight—as in a brawl that breaks a few pieces of furniture and doesn't look too good for their bodies, either. With that cheap and unnecessary gag out of the way, though, the rest their relationship is more grounded, and before a car chase/shootout unfolds along a foggy stretch of road (Is it for the atmosphere or to save on stunt work and visual effects?), there's an appreciated touch of Kyrah actually preparing her son for the inevitable violence. Overall, Shadow Force is too messy and formulaic to succeed as even a competent actioner, but some of the little details of the characters, of the dynamics of these relationships, and of the genuineness of the performances do shine through the clutter. They improve what might have been something much worse. Copyright © 2025 by Mark Dujsik. All rights reserved. |
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