"The Rhythm Section," which opened this weekend, is essentially a direct-to-video revenge thriller with occasionally high production values. Starring Blake Lively as Stephanie Patrick, a self-destructive woman who turns to vigilantism after her family is killed in a plane crash, which turns out to be not an accident. Yawn...
We find her a prostitute, enjoying her favorite controlled-substance when a reporter knocks on the door at her brothel, who informs her of the plot that ended her family. What follows are the obligatory scenes of her seeking revenge, taking up the role of a dead assassin under the eye of B (Jude Law), after tracking him down on her smartphone (how she affords the data plan is beyond me, prostitution must pay well).
There are layers of prosaic politics that fail to give the narrative anything its own, boiling down to a deadened exploitation flick without the exploitation. It is too interested in globetrotting the samey streets of too few unexciting locations for the next contract hit, getting bogged down with hollow declarations about who's involved in the plane crash and who they work for- this is half "James Bond" and half "Death Wish," only not nearly as slick or sleezy as either of those two series be worthwhile.
Blake does a good job with her face and body, expressing the grief she's going through, but her origins are underbaked, and her current directive is as rote as they come. Her performance is strong enough to keep me awake, but it isn't enough to keep viewers invested in the story the filmmakers are selling.
Perhaps premiering on Netflix would have helped "The Rhythm Section," which faces theatrical competition from the continued cinema juggernaut that is the supremely entertaining "Bad Boys for Life," as well as the Super Bowl on the living room screen. But alas, it fades from the projector as quickly as it does from memory.
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