Directed by Francis Lawrence (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay; Water for Elephants; I am Legend; Constantine) and starring Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games; Joy; Silver Linings Playbook; Winter's Bone; American Hustle), Joel Edgerton (The Great Gatsby; Black Mass; Zero Dark Thirty; Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones), Matthias Schoenaerts (The Danish Girl; Far from the Madding Crowd) and Charlotte Rampling (45 Years; Night Train to Lisbon; Deception).
Thriller, 139 mins, 16+
Russian ballerina Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) suffers a career-ending injury when her uncle, Vanya Egorov (Matthias Schoenaerts), recruits her to Sparrow School, a training school for Russia's intelligence service. Under the watchful eye of Matron (Charlotte Rampling), she learns how to use her body as a weapon.
She is then assigned to seduce an American agent, Nate Nash (Joel Edgerton), who handles the CIA's most sensitive penetration of Russian intelligence. They meet in a deadly game of deception and counter-espionage taking them to Moscow, Budapest, Vienna and London.
Dominika learns about seduction and power, and passes tests set by her uncle and Matron.
A taught thriller with twists aplenty, with many scenes shot in dim light to portray an aura of secrecy and shadows. You will be wondering throughout who everyone is ultimately working for, which makes for a very cloak-and-dagger approach. With scenes in different geographic locations, and the setting during the cold War, this film will interest those in post-war politics and espinage plots.
The Russian accents are believable enough and the drab apartment interiors and spacious communist-era architecture of public buildings give an air of authenticity to the entire film.
This is Jennifer Lawrence as you've never seen her before: from playing Katniss Everdeen in the Hunger Games, Rosalyn Rosenfeld in American Hustle, Tiffany in Silver Linings Playbook and Joy in Joy, her portrayal of Dominika Egorova here showcases the broad scope and wide range of her acting talents.
