[Review] The Old Guard(2020) {6.5/10}

In THE OLD GUARD, a skilled, courageous team of immortal warriors agree to a dangerous rescue in modern day. Unfortunately, once Andy (Charlize Theron), Booker (Matthias Schoenaerts), Nicky (Luca Marinelli), and Joe (Marwan Kenzari) arrive in South Sudan to liberate school children held hostage, they discover their task was a ruse. They've been set up by Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a man who identified himself as a highly-placed security agent when he sought their help. The team narrowly escapes but is now aware of imminent danger. At the same time, their extraordinary senses let them know that another immortal has appeared on earth, the first in more than two hundred years. Nile (Kiki Layne), a U.S. Marine serving in Afghanistan, must be extracted from her military base and made a part of their small band. At first, Nile is confused, horrified, and disbelieving, but ultimately the team of four becomes five. Their mission now is to find Copley and determine how their immortality was detected and stop those who have made them targets.

Dazzling action, an intriguing story, and talented actors make this female-driven adventure well worth the time; the writing and some thought-provoking notions about immortality make it special. Gina Prince-Bythewood, now the first Black woman to direct a big-budget actioner, delivers on both grand and intimate scales. The device of introducing a novice who needs to be schooled in the whys, wheres, and hows of the characters' origins works wonderfully well; the audience absorbs the backstory along with the newbie. And, though The Old Guard is based on a series of graphic novels, it's played with straightforward honesty and intimacy, not the often tongue-in-cheek tone of most comic book superhero tales. Theron is on fine form as the Scythian Methuselah, borrowing Furiosa’s steely glower and channelling her aptitude for complex choreography previously showcased in Atomic Blonde. Regular flurries of bullets and blades serve as the film’s main strength.

The Old Guard gets points for leaning into the idea that the immortals can die. The colours and tones were consistent and pleasant. The locations felt a bit small and London was least convincing but it was not all bad. The CGI was solid throughout and I was impressed by how grounded the damage was. Their injuries looked pretty real and their healing happened in convincing stages. Most of the film’s humanity is rooted in KiKi Layne’s Nile, a young US Marine serving in the Middle East and the first new immortal in centuries. Nile makes a handy access point for the viewer, teasing out backstory and lending proceedings some heart along the way. Chiwetel Ejiofor is somewhat wasted in a his role as a shady ex-CIA wonk, while the film’s primary antagonist — a Big Pharma CEO played by Harry ‘Dudley Dursley’ Melling, is so overplayed as to veer into parody. This lack of character depth highlights the somewhat throwaway plot, which never quite manages to kick in to high gear. It’s particularly unfortunate that the film’s most promising subplot, involving imprisoned immortal Veronica Ngo, is almost entirely abandoned, leaving a potentially far more interesting tale untold.

An entertaining fantasy action with no specific strong points but also nothing altogether very weak. Solid action beats and a story that skips from Sudan to Afghanistan, Paris and, finally, Guildford, ensure there's enjoyment to be had. An intriguing story does set the stage for a far more lively sequel but The Old Guard remains a slightly disappointing revenge/conspiracy yarn, that never quite lives up to its excellent conceit.

The Old Guard is now available on Netflix.