Argylle
Wait, there’s a Kingsman-verse now?
Argylle (2024)
3 / 5
The sharp-eyed might catch a few hints from director Matthew Vaughn here. There are subtle nods toward Vaughn’s Kingsman films happening throughout, but it’s easy to smile at them as Easter eggs, just fanservice for people who like this style of zany spy action. But then the candy-colored smoke starts going off and the gunfight-dance numbers begin, and you're going to have no doubt that this is a movie operating not just under a specific influence, but as an addition to it. See also the ubiquitous post-credits scene.
If you’ll forgive the clumsy segue, there’s another big addition that may lead to some interesting conversation with your film buff homies. Bryce Dallas Howard, starring here as bestselling spy-thriller author Elly, has added some weight. The last time I saw BDH was in Jurassic World, and she was rail thin (and I mean like cartoonishly thin, not just Hollywood skinny). Here she looks curvy-normal, the sort of cute-thicc that normal people look like (and frankly it suits her). But the change is so profound I didn’t recognize her. You might not, either. On one hand, that’s totally fine; Elly is called upon eventually to be more than an author, and the fact that she’s got some meat on her means that she’s not a roll-your-eyes 90-pound waifu. If this role had gone to, say, Gina Carano, you'd get it and it would be fine. Howard is almost believable in that way here too. However, because her character starts as a mousy introvert, her size can read as big but not fit. So in the back half of the film when she finally has to do some real spy stuff in order to survive the big act 2 swerve, you may find it a little hard to believe that she's now well-muscled under her curves. Melissa McCarthy struggles against this in Spy, too. Your mileage may vary.
Speaking of the act 2 swerve, though, some kudos are in order. Howard is fun, and mixes it up with Sam Rockwell in a way that feels very much like an updated crib of Romancing the Stone. It’s engaging and entertaining, and there are way worse 80s icons that could be cribbed from. But then it hits a HUGE act 2 swerve, and I have to tip my hat to director Vaughn and company for not spoiling that in the trailer. The trailer gives every indication of spoileriffic hack work, so it was a huge relief that the whole back half of the film is left mysterious.
3 stars of 5: I liked it, and as part of the larger series it does yeoman work, but it’s not something I need to see again.