Skip to main content

Review: Triple Frontier (2019)

Triple Frontier (2019)

Okay, so I had no really expectations going into this one, I was simply a bit bored the other evening and looking for something to watch and fell upon JC Chandor's Triple Frontier, one of Netflix's new marquee films. I did not see Chandor's previous, A Most Violent Year, but I did see All Is Lost, which starred Robert Redford and was actually quite excellent.

At the end of the day, Triple Frontier is likely not going to wow anyone. It very much is what it is. It is the tried and true story of a group of old friends getting back together for one final (and dangerous) job. In this, the film boasts quite the remarkable cast in Oscar Isaac, Ben Affleck, Charlie Hunnam, Garrett Hedlund and Pedro Pascal. Isaac is one of my absolute favourites of the 'new generation' of top caliber actors and, for the most part, he is the one who gives the film gravitas of any kind. In an apt move by the filmmakers, Hunnam and Hedlund play brothers in the film, and just looking at them one may ponder them actually being related in real-life. Affleck has the role with the most 'weight' given to it and Pascal is kinda just along for the ride. In general, none of the characters are really fleshed out with any compelling detail, other than some base points that the filmmakers go back to again and again for their main emotional conflicts. As the film is very much about the dynamics of the group, this lack of reason for investment in the characters is likely the film's greatest weakness.
The film boasts some capable and riveting action sequences that, in all likelihood, will be the reason why most people end up sticking along for the whole ride. The plot itself is quite jerky and the pacing ebbs and flows, but not in the good way. There is some discussion early on about the disenfranchisement of these soldiers with the country they once fought for that leads them to the film's central less-than-legal job. This is a fascinating topic ripe for dissection and elaboration, however, as one might guess the film never takes the opportunity to actually delve into it in any way. I also found some issues with the cinematography where many of the shots early on are unnecessarily dark and shadowy, though this is resolved later, once the group enters the wilderness of South America. For anyone who is in the mood for an actiony/thriller that you can turn your mind off for then you could do worse than throwing on Triple Frontier for a few hours.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Review: The New Mutants (2020)

The New Mutants (2020) TLDR: A sad, dismal final chapter in Fox's once-acclaimed X-Men saga. The New Mutants shows promise in fragments, but its poor script and plot and often awkward execution makes for a sickly overall package that is quite fitting for this equally-sickly year that it has finally been released in... The New Mutants were an alt-X-Men team created in the early 80's in an effort to revamp and re-contemporize a new team of teenage X-Men. The new series became a smash-hit with new star mutants like Magik, Cannonball, Sunspot, Wolfsbane and Mirage, all of whom continue to headline Marvel comics to this day. Josh Boone's The New Mutants, which was announced more than five years ago and shot in 2017, has finally seen the light of day in 2020... The film seeks to adapt the team's beloved 'Demon Bear' storyline, while introducing audiences to this fresh team of mutant superheroes. In doing so, Boone tries to create an omelet-homage from the likes of Ste...

Review: The Before Trilogy (1995, 2004, 2013)

The Before Trilogy TLDR: As a whole, and in each of its separate parts, Richard Linklater's 'Before Trilogy' is the cinematic experience in its absolute finest form. The story of Celine and Jesse speaks to the core of the human experience - surprising joys, inevitable obstacles and eventual pains, and, most importantly, the mystery and intrigue of love - and it does it in an affecting way that, almost unlike any other film, is simultaneously theatrical and also remarkably raw and realistic.  "It's just, people have these romantic projections they put on everything. That's not based on any kind of reality." - Jesse, Before Sunrise Even more than the multitudes of other incredible introspective bits of wisdom and philosophy that Celine and Jesse converse in across the three movies, this quote perhaps sums up the trilogy best of all. What are romance movies other than certain individuals' projections of what romance - often, idealized romance - is. Most o...

Review: Whiplash (2012)

Whiplash (2012) TLDR: On multiple levels Whiplash is a brilliant film. A dual character study. An ode to jazz music supremacy. And a cautionary (or inspiring?) tale of what it takes to become the world's greatest. In an instant, Whiplash cements Damien Chazelle as one of today's youngest and most talented filmmakers brimming with artistry, intensity and craftsmanship. This is not one to miss. It was surprising that the first time I saw Whiplash, I left the theatre with a slightly nauseous feeling in my gut. Not because of the film itself - its visuals or audio per se - there is nothing to criticize about its radiance. It was in its simple yet utterly-effective and haunting discussion of what it takes to become the greatest in one's field that left me feeling torn and conflicted. While most of the film seems to be a cautionary or reprimanding tale of jazz instructor Fletcher's (JK Simmons) brutal methods of 'mentorship', its ending posits perhaps an equally stron...