25 Jul The Gray Man Review

THE GRAY MAN

dir. The Russos, starring Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jessica Henwick, and Rege-Jean Page

The Gray Man, a story of a CIA aset who stumbles upon a number of agency secrets that could be damning for his superiors, manages to trigger a global assassin-lead manhunt spearheaded by a maniacal former colleague who will stop at nothing to accomplish his mission.

While suffering the fate of its 80s and 90s predecessors that scarified character development for bullets and explosions, The Gray Man is a complete 180 degree turn from the Russo’s previous film, Cherry. In that movie (a deep dive into a man struggling with addiction to find his way in the world after experiencing war), the progression and regression of Cherry as a character is the very heart of the film. Here in The Gray Man, no such screentime is given to fully flesh out any of characters outside of an intro scene for Gosling’s character, Sierra Six. Much like what John Wick eventually turned into, with so many interesting people to explore in the movie, The Gray Man feels like the first in a universe that could be ripe for a motley crew of killers and spies and shadowy organizations. That so little focus is given to characters like Suzanne Brewer is frustrating; with an actress as talented as Jessica Henwick, who we’ve seen in multiple action roles, there’s a mountain of possibility with only a molehill of actual relevancy. Whether that’s breadcrumbs for further screentime or a busted potential only remains to be seen.

Starring Ryan Gosling as Courtland Gentry, aka Sierra Six, our titular Gray Man is tasked with carrying out wetworks for the CIA. As a hired assassin, Gentry is cool, reserved, almost unflappable as he encounters each obstacle and finds ways to surmount them. While looking downright cool in the role, it unfortunately does nothing to challenge the actor himself; having seen Gosling portray characters like this in Drive and Blade Runner 2049, it’s not a stretch to see him play the role here. Delivering a dry wit that bounces off of Chris Evans’ more extravagant performance, Gosling glides through the scenes and hits his mark with the ease of a man moving through a house he’s lived in for years.

Chris Evans is the very definition of shenangians in this film. Continuing to lean into his heel turn started in Knives Out, Evans’ outright glee of playing a character that himself takes absolute joy in the horrible things he does for a living, Evans looks like he’s having the time of life. Complete with the absurd mustache and breathtaking inability to care about anyone or anything around him, Lloyd Hansen is one of the year’s most entertaining villains. There’s been a recent outcry on social media of moviegoers longing for a return to antagonists with less pathos, and their prayers couldn’t have been any more answered. There’s little development to Hansen; no tragic backstory, nothing that could shed him in any possible forgiving light, and not a hint of remorse for his heinous actions. He’s the villain who believes rules are only for those who adhere to them and thanks to his freewheeling nature he’s unburdened to do whatever he pleases to accomplish his goal. Evans delights in playing such a one note scumbag, and it’s through his delight that the audience is ok going down this road with Hansen as he pursues Six. Outlandishly boorish and wildly ostentatious, Evans knows exactly what the character needs and delivers in spades.

Unfortunately, Evans’ extravagance completely overshadows both Jessica Henwick and Regé-Jean Page as the film’s executive CIA agents. As the overarching villain of the story, Page’s Denny Carmichael is given astonishingly little screentime without much in the way of explanation for his actions or motivations. Page is reminiscent of action movie villains from decades ago: a good looking man in a suit with secrets to hide as a catalyst for the protagonist to go on the run. At that simple task, Page is competent enough. The most underserved characters are the main women of the film, Henwick’s Suzanne Brewer and Ana de Armas’ Dani Miranda. They both float in and out of the movie, and while de Armas has more to do here than she does in last year’s No Time to Die, her character is still shortchanged a good action scene and we as an audience still have as of yet to see the actress really cut loose in an action role with capabilities that have only been teased thus far. As a suit and Carmichael’s right-hand woman, Suzanne Brewer is something of the film’s moral center, or could be if she had more screentime to play out her inner conflicts. Despite the atrocious wig she’s burdened with, Henwick’s character is interesting and likeable enough (and is in enough of a position of power by the film’s end) that another outing that took the requisite time to focus on her would be more than welcome.

Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, formerly of Marvel Cinematic Universe fame, The Gray Man is a perfect vehicle to display their love of action. Delivering a second act scene that could be the spiritual successor to the highway fight in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, it’s the action set pieces that are first and foremost here. Technically, it seems the siblings have never been more unchained; sweeping drone movements that make for dazzling establishing shots are also unnecessarily used to insert the audience into action, more just because they can than for any real creative reason. Directorial flourish is always welcomed so long as it serves the story, but flair for flair’s sake is often employed in an attempt to dazzle the audience into overlooking other weaknesses. Outside of that, there’s some visual spectacle to the film worthy of praise. Shot by cinematographer Stephen F. Windon, responsible for six of the nine Fast and Furious movies (and currently shooting the tenth), his eye for actualizing over the top action scenes is perfectly congruent for the story the Russos are trying to tell. Boasting an outstanding color palette starting with Six’s initial scene surrounded by fireworks, Windon’s lens set against the backdrop of numerous European countries captures all the characters and their locations while looking their best.

Overall, The Gray Man is the perfect movie to check out after a hard day’s work with popcorn and drinks in hand. Propelled by Gosling and Evans, with over-the-top direction from the Russos, the film has a vibrancy and more than enough absurdity to make it a fun watch from beginning to end. While the plot itself is thin and relatively cliche, it’s what the Russos choose to do with it that squeezes that lack of substance for every morsel of entertainment. At just a hair over two hours long, the cat-and-mouse chase that hops across countries with little regard for international law starts with a bang and continues a breakneck pace throughout. Almost all style with very little substance, it relies on the audience’s willingness to relax and be taken along for the ride. If they’re willing to do that, it’s one hell of an entertaining ride. The Gray Man is currently streaming on Netflix.

Review by Darryl Mansel