'Red Sparrow' is a little overlong by about 15-20 minutes and there are times where the pace loses its tautness. For all those strengths, there are drawbacks. Frosty Charlotte Rampling, authoritative Jeremy Irons and menacing Matthias Schoenarts support her just as strongly. Jennifer Lawrence, hated a lot on IMDb but for me one of the better actresses today under 30, is in one of her most demanding roles here and she is not taxed by it at all and gives it everything, commanding the screen with ease. Francis Lawrence directs with cool confidence and personally that the violence and torture weren't that gratuitous, they are not for the faint-hearted certainly but for the subject the brutality was needed, is not overdosed upon and added to the full horrors of the situation. Script is smart and thought-provoking, again being challenging and elaborate enough without being too over-complicated. The music has its share of tension without intruding too much. Made just as striking by the stylish photography, where the cold look suits the tone and subject very well, and slick editing. In particular the scenery, landscapes and locations, which are wondrous and have such a lot of atmosphere and beauty. A lot goes on and it's very complex content, yet the story doesn't feel too convoluted if perhaps over-stuffed in places. Luckily it is executed with a suitably cold and suspenseful touch, while having the intelligence to be involving and not taking itself overly seriously. 'Red Sparrow' has a very elaborate and suitably challenging story with plenty of twists and turns, the most shocking being the ending which will confound some but like with me haunt others. 'Red Sparrow' does try and has a lot going for it, while being problematic, if anything leaning slightly towards the trying too hard side of the spectrum. A rating only reserved by me for films that have no redeeming qualities and don't try. It is to me much better than the mixed critical reviews, while sharing a few of the criticisms, and is not a 1/10 film. The book is very difficult to adapt, but the film condenses it while still adhering to the spirit of the source material and what makes it so good and still making sense. After seeing it, 'Red Sparrow' turned out to be a decent film in my opinion that flies high enough, but falls short of being great (like it could easily have been) meaning it doesn't quite soar. As well as loving the book, the main reason for seeing 'Red Sparrow' was the cast which is a talented one and while not being blown away by the advertising it left me intrigued. It is very complex, but also very clever, suspenseful, intelligent and fun. The book, that 'Red Sparrow' is adapted from, is brilliant. I hope these two continue to work together for years to come. I'm sorry I'm late with this review, but if you plan on Redboxing the movie or catching it before the theatrical run ends, do so! It is not a first date movie, but is definitely sensual, very engrossing and yet another star for both Lawrences' track records. There's another standout performance in Red Sparrow, but I promised I wouldn't spoil the movie in my review. She is equal parts mechanical and overtly invasive in finding sexual quirks. One of the other standouts here is Rampling, the stoic mission driven school commandant who effortlessly instills guile in her students through psychosexual manipulation. He is excellent as a supporting actor and he only makes Jennifer that much more focal in the story. She starts off scared and green, but over the course of 2 hours she is brutally beautiful in her façade. Lawrence does a pretty convincing job pulling off a Russian dialect, but it's being sociopathic while undercover where she shines. yes you get to see a penis, some breasts and butt, but at this point you should know Jen is human. The violence is no worse than Fight Club and about as disturbing as Black Swan. The crux of why people are turning this down is the violence and graphic nudity. The movie is one part Lawrence learning to survive covertly and two parts not trying to turn on her government to aid her mother, friend, and colleagues. She crosses paths with Edgerton, an agent in the middle of a career SNAFU, as he attempts to redeem his status with the CIA after getting made during his cover. Lawrence plays a Soviet op who is conned into a femme fatale lifestyle of cutthroat operatives when her ballerina career is ruined from an injury. (The personal comments about the president haven't helped.) But throw all that out, look at this film objectively, and you will be pleasantly rewarded with a spy thriller that's cunning, sexy and disturbing all at once. Since The Fappening, people have been on a mission to smear her image. As a preface, this is not the only JenLaw movie to get unnecessarily slammed by sham reviews.
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