Director Matthew Vaughn has returned with his latest action packed film. Argylle introduces us to author Elly Conway (Bryce Dallas Howard) who writes the best-selling spy novel series of the same name about a secret agent who’s on a mission to unravel a global spy syndicate. While writing her next book, Elly is approached by real life spy Aiden (Sam Rockwell) who informs her that her franchise closely mirrors the covert actions of a real-life spy organization called the Division led by a man named Ritter (Bryan Cranston) that has gone rogue. Both Ritter and Aiden race to get Elly to write her next chapter so that they can deduce where information detailing the Division’s evil rogue actions is hidden.
Argylle’s premise being based around a spy novelist who unwittingly turns her imaginative stories into real life danger is an interesting one and combined with some decent action scenes would’ve made this movie at least a decent watch. Writer Jason Fuchs however was able to inject his original script with enough inventiveness and twists and turns to elevate this spy action thriller into something that is able to make up for some of its more notable flaws. Just as Elly’s adventure with Aiden moves to London and begins to enter into a bit of a lull, the story turns into a series of interesting revelations that flesh out our protagonist’s background and story and reinvests the audience into the outcome of her entrance into the world of espionage. Argylle’s action scenes aren’t anything you haven’t already seen in a thousand other nine figure action blockbusters and don’t rewrite the book on what’s possible like the John Wick or The Raid franchises for instance. For this reason, leaning on the movie’s story and expounding upon its premise was always going to be paramount in allowing Argylle to avoid being completely rote and Fuchs and Vaughn have accomplished that.
Another avenue where Argylle attempts to differentiate itself from typical action blockbuster fare is in Elly’s character arc. As alluded to above, it’s hard to describe her full story in too much detail without giving away major plot points, but the overall theme of her development revolving around self-assurance and discovery is fair game to discuss. Elly begins the movie as a self conscious, anxious woman obsessed with her work to the point where her fictional character melds into her real life when she encounters stressful situations. As she sinks further and further into the world of spies, Elly gains greater confidence and assurance in who she is and what she is capable of. This arc is interwoven with other plot points to the extent that while it is able to come through onscreen, it’s not strong enough on its own to truly shine as its own component of the movie. This is no fault of Howard’s portrayal of Elly and is attributed more to the structure of Argylle’s script.
Howard works well with Rockwell’s Aiden as the two have a charming and believable chemistry as the experienced spy trying to bring along the naive and unprepared civilian. The cast is star studded, but one-third of the big names present such as Richard E. Grant, John Cena, and Dua Lipa feel more like stunt casting. Argylle treats viewers to some creative transitions as it cuts from one scene to another, but its cinematography is ultimately run of the mill as well. So what does work with this film? Bryce Dallas Howard and Sam Rockwell’s chemistry as they embark on their mission across the globe makes the characters people you want to root for while the plot’s numerous twists work to foster continued investment at points where the movie can start to drag. While the twists help during the second act, Argylle’s overall runtime may be slightly too ambitious for its content as the third act feels about ten minutes too long. Still, there is enough good here to make this movie an entertaining enough movie night for those looking for a decent action thriller with spy movie elements.
Image: Universal Pictures
