Atomic Blonde stars Charlize Theron in another action role and just like she did with Mad Max: Fury Road and The Fate of the Furious, she continues to prove why she’s the modern queen of female action heroines with this stylish, violent spy thriller.
Theron stars as Lorraine Broughton, a British spy who’s been assigned by her superiors to retrieve a list of other field agents which is concealed inside a wristwatch. Toby Jones costars as her superior and John Goodman is part of the CIA.
James McAvoy plays Broughton’s partner who may or may not be what he seems. His eccentricities are not something she may or may not be able to tolerate, but nevertheless, they go off to Russia where the list is located to do their duty. Their first piece of action involves protecting a Russian defector who currently has the list (Eddie Marsan).
The Mummy’s Sofia Boutella has nice chemistry with Theron and also supplies some much needed expertise. After their first encounter, Jones’ character while interrogating Theron asks: “You made contact with the French operative?” It will give one of the biggest laughs in the entire movie.
As for the action scenes, Theron unleashes her inner John Wick or should I say Jane Wick and her mission involves a series of typically complicated plot threads, but all we’re really interested in seeing is Theron kicking as much butt as possible. With this character, Theron holds her own and is a force to be reckoned with. I’m sure she could go toe to toe with Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley or Uma Thurman’s Bride.
There’s also a lot of popular ‘80s songs to keep the film at a riveting pace even through complex expositional dialogue such as “99 Luftballons,” “Cat People,” “I Ran (So Far Away),” and “Under Pressure.”
Next to Wonder Woman, this is the best female action star of the summer.
Grade: B+
(Rated R for sequences of strong violence, language throughout, and some sexuality/nudity.)
