Argylle
review by Bobby Blakey
Director Matthew Vaughn has been bringing some fun flicks to the masses for years including X-Men: First Class, Kick-Ass and the Kingsman series. Now he is heading into a new world with his latest film Argylle featuring an all-star cast including Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, Henry Cavill, John Cena, Ariana DeBose, Dua Lipa, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O’Hara, Sofia Boutella, and Samuel L. Jackson. Could this film bring the fun and action it promises, or will it fail to find its own story?
Argylle follows Elly Conway, the reclusive author of a series of best-selling espionage novels, whose idea of bliss is a night at home with her computer and her cat, Alfie. But when the plots of Elly’s fictional books—which center on secret agent Argylle and his mission to unravel a global spy syndicate—begin to mirror the covert actions of a real-life spy organization, quiet evenings at home become a thing of the past. Accompanied by Aiden, a cat-allergic spy, Elly (carrying Alfie in her backpack) races across the world to stay one step ahead of the killers as the line between Elly’s fictional world and her real one begins to blur.
The trailers for this film seemed to take on the world like James Bond infused with The King’s Men and it delivered just that. It brings its own originality to the mix in the way the story is executed but brings the tone of Vaughn’s previous films in a fun
and energetic way. There are some pacing issues at times and of course it is over the top, but as a whole it was pretty dang fun.
The format is great with it bouncing between the world of the novel and the real world and sometimes all at once. If that seems confusing have no fear its not. It blends well and adds to the fun of it all while offering up come clever visuals and creative fun. One of the early fight scenes showcases this with numerous people involved and shot so well and exciting but had to have been a pain in the butt to
pull off. It’s a testament to Vaughn’s filmmaking vision that brings so many stunning and beautifully violent visuals.
The cast is great across the board, but this is all about Howard and Rockwell. They have great dysfunctional chemistry from beginning to end. Both do a great job with the action, bringing kinetic energy to each movement and clearly doing a lot of it themselves. Cavill, with his Schwarzenegger look is fantastic as the fictional Argylle bringing a perfect swag to the role that is just a ton of fun to watch. While it is comical at times, this is the perfect chance to see what he would look like as James Bond had he ever gotten the chance. Cena is a bit more subdued here, but clearly has fun with his smaller role.
As the journey goes on there are some moments where it gets a bit lost in itself and all over the place trying to bring so much to the story. It works but drags with some pacing in some of these moments, but never so bad that I didn’t still stay invested in the fun of it all. The tone is light and there are numerous over the top moments that are just ridiculous in the best way possible including an ice-skating knife fight with vibes from a iconic scene in The Transporter as well as one of the most colorful shoot outs I have ever seen. The scenes are silly and laughable on some level, but the sheer creativity and intricate details that went into making them work is impressive and adds to the crazy world this film takes place in.
There is a mid-credit scene that teases what might be as well as something that could be teasing something bigger or just a fun easter egg for fans. Decide for yourself and check out Argylle in theaters now.