Red Sparrow – a movie review

Released in theaters

• March, 2018

Ratings

• 47% – Rotten Tomatoes Critics
• 57% – Rotten Tomatoes Movie Goers
• 65% – Roger Koehler

Starring

• Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton, Mattias Schoenaerts, Jeremy Irons

Directed by

• Francis Lawrence

Official Movie Trailer

Rotten Tomatoes Reviews

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/red_sparrow

Roger’s Review

I often wonder sometimes why certain movies are theatrical “hits”, though they are quite obviously average, if not even inferior on occasion, but that others which probably should be successful, do not generate much box office nor critical interest.

I believe that this movie would be an example of the latter.  I would imagine each of you may be able to identify at least one or two movies which fall into the former category.

If after reading this review, you think that you might like to see this movie in a theater – act quickly.  I doubt that it will be in theaters much longer given the mediocre box office receipts to date.

In this movie, Lawrence plays a Russian prima ballerina (Dominika Egorova) with the Bolshoi Ballet who is trying to take care of her ailing mother.  A devastating injury not only derails her career as a ballerina but also threatens her ability to care for her mother.

Her uncle Ivan (Mattias Schoenaerts), is the Deputy Director of the Russian SVR – the foreign intelligence branch of the former KGB.  He offers to help her be able to care for her mother but only if she agrees to go to Red Sparrow school, where Russia trains young men and women to use seduction to achieve intelligence goals.  Her first assignment is to obtain the confidence of an American CIA agent (Nate Nash played by Joel Edgerton) who knows the identity of a double agent whom the SVR badly wants to expose.

The movie definitely keeps you guessing as I found myself going back and forth wondering who Lawrence’s character was truly working for – the SVR or the CIA.  It kept me guessing right up until the rather surprising conclusion to the movie.

Both my wife and I enjoyed this movie.  We found it very good and entertaining, but certainly not great  If you look at some of the negative reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, you will read things like “dopey, confusing script”, “Lawrence wastes her time on sub-par material” and “incongruously devoid of thriller attributes”.  I for one don’t know where all that it coming from.  Even most of the negative reviews still give Lawrence’s performance a thumb’s up, so it is not just a case of critic’s bashing Lawrence, regardless of the quality of the movie.  If anything, it is more the opposite.

Some words of warning.  There are a few startling, and rather graphic, scenes of torture which were quite difficult to watch.  There are also a few brief, sometimes disturbing, depictions of simulated sexual activity as well.

Regarding the stars, Lawrence is likely well known to all of you by now.

Australian actor Joel Edgerton has been in TV and movies since 1995.  Most notable movies he has been in include Zero Dark Thirty and a couple of the later Star Wars  installments.

Belgian Mattias Schoenaerts is an actor probably not previously in anything which you may be aware of, with the possible exception of The Danish Girl, depending upon just how much of a movie junkie you are.  But in his role as Ivan in this film, my wife’s comment that he reminded her of Vladimir Putin likely speaks well for his performance, since a young Putin is very much what he was likely intended to portray.

The movie is based upon a book of the same name published in 2013 by former CIA operative Jason Matthews.

Director Francis Lawrence is not related to Jennifer.  However, he did direct the last three installments of the Hunger Games  movie saga which, of course, skyrocketed Jennifer Lawrence to stardom.  The only one in the saga he did not direct was the initial Hunger Games  movie.

If you’re intrigued, particularly if you are a fan of Jennifer Lawrence, go quickly if you want to see it while it is still in a theater.  Otherwise, wait until it comes out on DVD or Netflix.

Interviews with stars and director of Red Sparrow (5:01) …

 

Interview with Jennifer Lawrence and Joel Edgerton (4:55) …

 

Stephen Colbert interviews Jennifer Lawrence and they both (she in particular) get a bit entertainingly tipsy (9:23) …

 

Colbert interview – part II (5:03) …