The Rhythm Section Reviews

Based on the novel of the same name, The Rhythm Section, is a brooding yet uninteresting tale of a trauma-stricken woman-turned-contract killer. The premise is intriguing, and the story even gets somewhat interesting during its 109-minute runtime, but for the most part, Reed Morano’s action-drama falls flat. Delivered in an ultra-dark setting, Morano succeeds in getting the tone across, yet she fails to deliver anything more than that. The camera work is nauseating, with many scenes are drawn out and pretentious. And maybe worst of all, the plot is completely fractured. Screenwriter Mark Burnell, who also penned the novel, struggles here at developing dialog that would yield any sort of on-screen connection among the cast, which sets the otherwise talented acting at a disadvantage. Only saved by a few individual performances, highlighted by Blake Lively, The Rhythm Section shows potential but fails to provide spectators with a good movie-going experience.   Stephanie Patrick (Blake Lively), was a loving daughter and sister, and everything seemed to be going perfectly fine in her life. One fateful day, her family boarded a flight, that she was meant to be on, and it never arrived at its destination. Stephanie starts on a downward spiral, falling victim to a drug addiction and prostitution. A reporter eventually contacts her and lets her know that he believes the plane crash was an act of terrorism, not an accident. As she starts to unravel the conspiracy, a series of horrific events lead her to ex-MI6 agent and reclusive “B” (Jude Law). It is at this moment, when Stephanie starts to learn how to get revenge on her family’s murderer.   Morano sure seems to have a style, and it is implemented in full effect here. The first hour of the film is drawn out with many unnecessary in-your-face close-ups, first-person action scenes, and overall shoddy camera work. If it weren’t for Lively making these scenes at least bearable, the film may have been even worse off. There is a sense that Morano is trying to tell the story visually, through emotional hardships and the overall tone, but it comes across as hollow and pompous. Worse yet, the direction and writing combination couldn’t have less chemistry, and the story greatly suffers. These characters never actually grow together, even when the audience knows that there was an attempt. As a result, the character relationships that are more laughable than anything else.   What the movie does have going for it is some solid acting and bits of intrigue. About halfway through, things start to get entertaining. Morano seems to grow out of her early statement phase, and starts to focus the story on Stephanie, the contract killer. This, unfortunately, is also mishandled, and even the best of scenes are forgotten as soon as credits roll.   The Rhythm Section is undoubtedly inefficient, and it is one of the few times that a movie like this could actually benefit from having a sequel, albeit with a different team at the helm. Unfortunately, for the time being, audiences should expect to be disappointmented. Pacing, plot. and camera work ultimately lead this one down the wrong path, and fans will be left wondering what could have been.