The Gray Man – Movie Review
Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo (Avengers Endgame)
Writer: Joe Russo, Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely (Screenplay)
Writer: Mark Greaney (Book)
Cast
- Ryan Gosling (La La Land)
- Chris Evans (Captain America: Winter Soldier)
- Ana de Armas (No Time to Die)
- Billy Bob Thornton (Armageddon)
- Jessica Henwick (Love and Monsters)
- Rege-Jean Page (Mortal Engines)
Plot: When the CIA’s most skilled operative-whose true identity is known to none-accidentally uncovers dark agency secrets, a psychopathic former colleague puts a bounty on his head, setting off a global manhunt by international assassins.
Runtime: 2 Hours 2 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: The Gray Man starts as CIA agent Fitzroy (Thornton) recruits prisoner Six (Gosling). Years later Six is considered one of the best agents in the business until his latest job reveals that Carmichael (Page) is trying to eliminate Fitzroy’s agents.
Carmichael hires Lloyd Hansen (Evans) to hunt down and kill Six. This leads to a dangerous cat-n-mouse between the two, as Lloyd puts a hit out on Six, who must use his resources to survive.
Verdict on The Gray Man
Characters
Six was facing years in prison until he was given a chance to work for the CIA. He spends the next two decades building up his reputation being the best agent on call. After his latest job goes wrong, he becomes the target of the CIA, using his skills to stay alive. He works alone, has connections all over the world and has a calm approach, filled with one-liners.
Lloyd Hansen is the emotionless hitman that has no limits to what he will do. His methods of torture have given him a reputation within the criminal world that will see him recruited for more difficult jobs. He seems to get pleasure from this work and doesn’t care how many people get killed completing the mission.
Dani Miranda is the one agent that continues to work with Six. She sees that Lloyd is a sociopath and wants to do what is right after being the only one who saw why Six hesitated before. Handling herself in a fight, she becomes the most important person to Six in their mission.
Fitzroy is the man that recruited Six, seeing him as an asset for the CIA. He trained him and prepared him for everything but finds himself pushed out and used as bait by Lloyd.
In the supporting cast, we get plenty of different characters within the criminal operation. Some have connections for Six and others are here to help Lloyd. Each will have a moment to stand out in the bigger picture of the story.
Performances
Ryan Gosling returns to the action genre for the first time in a while. He brings his own unique approach to the role, one which sees his character have a laidback approach, no matter what he has just been through.
Chris Evans continues to take roles away from the heroic after his years as Captain America. He is brilliant in this role and looks like he could continue to bring us more villainous roles for years to come.
Ana de Armas is continuing her excellent few years, with another strong performance. She proves she could be a new action hero for years to come.
The supporting cast is all strong too, with everyone getting their own moments to stand out, showing the cold side of Rege-Jean Page or the reluctant side of Billy Bob Thornton.
Story
The story follows a CIA agent that gets targeted by the CIA after he discovers a secret about what is going on within the agency. On the run he finds himself hunted down by a psychotic assassin who is given free rein to do what he wants.
This story is one that uses the whole government agency has turned on a loyal asset trait, which is an easy one to work with. The movie works great because it might well be going to each location for the next moment. It does continue to lead to intense sequences between Six and whoever he finds himself against.
With the endless locations and searching for someone, they can trust. Only it does seem to end a lot flatter than it could have, focusing on building up a sequel over finishing the first story.
Themes
The Gray Man is an all-out action thriller that does give us some excellent action sequences. The Prague sequence alone is brilliant being the full highlight of the action side of things. That doesn’t mean the rest is weaker with the final sequence being just as intense. The different locations help show how deep this has become and leads to the connections needed around the world.
Where to Watch: The Gray Man is available on Netflix now.
Final Thoughts – The Gray Man is an excellent action movie that never stops with relentless action.