Actors: Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer,
Alicia Vikander, Elizabeth Debicki, Hugh Grant
Rating: 7 out of 10, A reboot of the
1960’s TV series that was launched when the Bond films exploded on popular
culture. I wasn’t a huge fan of the original TV series – I watched it – as any
red blooded American boy was expected to do in the late 1960s. I always thought
Illya Kuryakin was a lot cooler than the uber-suave Napoleon Solo which was out
of step with what was pushed by Cold War sensibilities. I was excited to see
Guy Ritchie at the helm as he always finds a way to inject some very sly humor
into action flicks. Maybe I was expecting too much. I walked out thinking, well
that was okay but I wanted to be dazzled while I was only mildly amused. The
more I thought on it I realized the problem was Kryptonian. Superman was so
stiff and deadpan that he failed miserably at capturing the wit and charm of
Solo. The Lone Ranger (Armie Hammer) on the other hand was superb as Kuryakin,
talk about a comeback. Its problematic, however, when a buddy picture only has
one of the buddies operational. Ritchie made a gallant effort at trying to
recapture the 1960s setting and the story was interesting enough but with
Cavill apparently mainlining liquid kryptonite the film falls short.
MVP: Hammer as the stiff but dangerous
Kuryakin
