Atomic Blonde Review

I was VERY intrigued about seeing David Leitch’s Atomic Blonde because the trailer was a scrumptious collection of garishly coloured and edgy shots and my artists beady eyes zipped straight down to my nearest big screen.

-However-

My experience of the film felt very much as if I was wondering round a retro-contemporary art exhibition, thinking; “ooh look at the cool vibes from this bathtub full of ice -still- why are all the information plaques in Braille?” I had no idea what the plot was doing one minute to the next. As far as I could understand the film was about a spy agent called Lorraine off on a mission with James-chic-rogue-Mcavoy to retrieve some codes in Berlin, before the baddies did bad things with them. There where so many stylistic visual moments that I strongly appreciated but I felt isolated as a viewer because I had no clue what was going on. The stakes didn't feel high enough to be able to experience the sort tension that makes you urge the protagonists to succeed at their mission. To be fair, I didn't fully understand what they were trying to succeed at. I did think however that Charlize Theron, Sophia Boutella and James McAvoy had a great energy to their performances and were very watchable start to finish. I think Theron tackles the action sequences very masterfully, she has an incredible ability to draw your full attention. The costumes and design of the film were bold yet minimalist with splashes of garish colour which I loved. I thought Therons' edgy renegade look was well curated, so much so it culminated in me purchasing a black pleather skirt on my way home. There were a few definite moments of humour in the film and when they happened the frown of confusion on my face settled briefly. I thought the comedic moments seemed to be much more coherent then the plot in general. One section of the film I was impressed with however was the long shot of the stair case fight scene, it was complex and evidently took a lot of skilled choreography and filming techniques.
My ambition now is to be as athletic and unstoppable in heels as Charlize Theron.