13 Aug Beckett Review

BECKETT

dir. Ferdinando Cito Filomarino, starring John David Washington, Boyd Holbrook, Vicky Kripes, and Alicia Vikander

Beckett, an action thriller about a man on the run in a foreign country, is yet another entry in a long list of movies where normal, everyday people are suddenly thrown into circumstances beyond their control. The best of this genre, North By Northwest, is a fun ride featuring a leading man that exuded more charm than the average person is capable of. Unfortunately, Beckett is leagues away from holding a candle to the Hitchcock thriller, with the former having an interesting premise but paper thin characters and weak motivations. Beckett (Washington) and his girlfriend April (Vikander) are on holiday in Greece. The audience joins them the morning after an argument but soon all is well as they explore the country. On the way to their next hotel, Beckett falls asleep behind the wheel of the car, sending it crashing into a house. This circumstance simultaneously kills April and marks Beckett as a target of a conspiracy. To stay alive, Beckett has to flee through the country to make it to the one place of safety. the U.S. Embassy in Athens.

John David Washington, in his second Netflix movie of the year after Malcolm & Marie, plays the titular role of Beckett, a man being hunted for reasons unknown. Washington does the best he can with the material given, which, unfortunately isn’t much. His penchant for playing underdeveloped characters on film (see: TENET) seriously hampers Washington’s abilities as an actor with sparse material to use. In that same regard, Alicia Vikander who’s talents are immense (as shown by her dual role in The Green Knight) are utterly wasted in Beckett, with a mere 15 minutes of screen time as April, Beckett’s girlfriend. The chemistry between the two is unbelievably flat and nonexistent; it almost seems as if Vikander flew in for the day, filmed her scenes, and flew out before the plane’s engines cooled off. This amongst her worst performances, due in part to how little she has to do and how unconvincing she is as Beckett’s girlfriend. The only actor who seems to actually enjoy himself is Boyd Holbrook as Tynan, an employee of the U.S. embassy. While not in the film long, Holbrook’s performance is charming and entertaining to watch.

Directed by Ferdinando Cito Filomarino, Beckett can only be described as a standard thriller. Graduating from the ranks of being a second unit director behind Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name, Suspiria), Cito Filomarino takes full control here. Beckett’s weak writing is complimented by Cito Filomarino’s directing. Stylistically, there’s not much to the direction; Cito Filomarino takes a very straightforward, workmanlike approach to the material resulting in a middle of the road story that seems to have become the staple of Netflix movies. Just shy of two hours, the movie feels a little long, with Beckett managing to accomplish his goal with 45 minutes still left in the film.

Overall, Beckett harkens back to the thrillers that were popular in the 90s. While the movie doesn’t particularly stand out in any way, it’s still a decent ride Cito Filomarino takes us on. John David Washington sells the role of a man in over his head and out of his depth well as he stumbles his way through chase sequences. A flimsy setup undersold by the complete lack of chemistry between Washington and Vikander hamper the first act until the action kicks into gear 30 minutes later. Still, it makes for a passable middle of the week watch that will keep you mostly entertained enough throughout. Beckett is now streaming on Netflix.

Review by Darryl Mansel