Directed By:
Simon Kinberg
Written By:
Theresa Rebeck, Simon Kinberg, Bek Smith
Starring:
Jessica Chastain, Lupita Nyong’o, Diane Kruger
Genre:
Action, Thriller
Rated: PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, brief strong language, and suggestive material.
In ‘355’, Jessica Chastain plays Mason ‘Mace’ Browne, a CIA agent who is considered to be a “Wildcard” amongst her peers, tries to stop a top-secret weapon from falling into mercenary hands, But she’s not the only one in the game. As she learns of other agents and governments’ desire to get the weapon, she will need to join forces with her fellow international agents on a lethal mission to retrieve it.
Simon Kinberg is famous among most ‘X-Men’ fans for destroying one of the franchise’s biggest storylines, Writing ‘X-Men: The Last Stand’ and writing & directing ‘X-Men: Dark Pheonix’. He is now in the spy genre looking to reincarnate his reputation, but for the most part, ‘355’ falls flat on everything but its casting.
To speak on that, the casting in 355 is excellent. We not only have the powerhouse actress with Jessica Chastain but there is Lupita Nyong’o, Diane Kruger, Penélope Cruz, Edgar Ramírez, Sebastian Stan. This is a STACKED party, that all do what they can with the material given to them. Also, have to give credit for the fun it looked like all the cast were having in these roles and that at least puts it in a higher up category than what we have seen from previous films of Kinberg.
Where the film falls flat is with the story. With an all-female action team and the caliber of talent on screen, it’s very jarring to hear so many played-out action one-liners, plot twists that can be seen from miles away, and glaring plot holes that can’t be excused. Looking back to a very well executed Spy thriller ‘Spy’ with Melissa McCarthy, you can see where story and writing make it the far superior film to ‘355’, and they were making fun of the genre the whole time!
Overall, I give credit to the talent in the film, and I believe you can look in a somewhat positive light in their performances regardless of the material. I had hoped for more in the writing and directing side, or at least a more engaging story. Still, if you like, go and check this out, but I can’t recommend it myself.
