THE OLD GUARD
Charlize’s Angels
Charlize Theron plays an immortal mercenary in this Netflix Original.
Had The Old Guard been made 20 years ago, it would probably have featured a past-his-prime Arnold Schwarzenegger as the head of its group of immortal warriors. The fact that the movie’s action leads are both female shows that Hollywood has moved on a bit during the intervening decades. Unfortunately, little else is cutting edge about a script that feels like a throwback to a time before action cinema was dominated by comic book superheroes.
Based on a 2017 Image Comics series by Greg Rucka and Leandro
Fernández, this Netflix Original centres on Charlize Theron’s Andromeda of Scythia (that’s Andy for short), the millenniaold leader of a quartet of ancient mercenaries; imagine a more progressive A-Team with added medieval weapons and the ability to heal their wounds in seconds.
The group’s existence is turned upside down by the unfortunate convergence of three external factors: a scruples-free pharmaceutical boss who wants to harvest their DNA; signs that one of the gang’s immortality might be about to expire; and – most importantly – the revelation that a US marine in Afghanistan (If Beale Street Could Talk’s KiKi Layne) has similar regenerative powers.
While the implausibly evil CEO (Harry Potter’s Harry Melling) feels like he’s wandered in from one of the weaker Bond films, director Gina Prince-Bythewood (The Secret Life Of Bees) gives her other characters plenty of opportunity to develop. Theron proved in Mad Max: Fury Road that she’s brilliant at playing a stoical action hero, and she channels similar energy into a woman whose longevity, we learn, has left emotional scars. There’s also genuine chemistry with the other members of the group – you actually believe their friendship spans centuries.
Meanwhile, Chiwetel Ejiofor brings his usual emotional depth to a potentially thankless role as the ex-CIA guy who entraps Andy’s unit. But Layne is the standout as an ordinary soldier who has to deal with the consequences of her “gifts”.
With no obvious higher calling and no alien influence, the Highlander-like mythology is also intriguing – these guys are simply immortal, and not even they understand all the rules of their condition. There’s certainly plenty more to explore if the movie spins off into the hinted-at sequel.
The Old Guard’s problems are all a result of its by-the-numbers storytelling. The plot twists have an over-familiar inevitability to them, while the set-pieces are workmanlike rather than exhilarating; while it’s pleasing to see an action movie that isn’t a CG-fest, a little more visual flair would have been welcome. As would a few more jokes – let’s face it, if you’re centuries old, a sense of humour is very much going to come in handy. Richard Edwards
In the original comic, the artist used actor Jean-Paul Belmondo as a reference for the look of the immortal Booker.
A little more visual flair would be welcome