Fab and fun femme fatale film
MARY Goodwin is what I imagine Oliver Pope’s bad Mama Jama of a long-lost cousin would be. Played by Taraji P Henson, Mary, the character the film is named after, roars without conjuring any memories of the Lyons.
Bringing the best bits of blaxploitation to 2017, Proud Mary presents a woman who, simply put, gets things done. She’s a gun-wielding, by-any-means-neccessary force to be reckoned with – and she looks stunning in all-leather everything.
Mary is part of a family that makes organised crime look good. Seriously, they dress well, they look great and they have dinner parties where the boys have to wear jackets. Mary is a sharp assassin who is never affected by any hit she is sent out on. Well, almost never. After successfully completing an assignment on a man who was the opposite of a Lannister, Mary finds that he was not alone in his home when she killed him. His son was there.
Although the son didn’t see Mary, it doesn’t stop her guilt and she follows him for a year to make sure he’s safe.
At the end of his rope, Mary realises she has one option: to take the boy in. Becoming an instant mom who occasionally kills people for a living (without anyone – and especially the boy – finding out) isn’t exactly a balancing act many can manage. But Mary sure does try.
What follows is her attempt to hang up her revolver, a war among the crime factions and a family who won’t let her go. Can she survive?
I’m not in the business of spoiling movies for you so I’ll stop the story there.
Henson, who also executive produces the film, is perfectly cast as someone who feels remorse but isn’t defined by it. She is, in fact, a woman who wants to hold destiny in her own hands. This is shown in how Mary has an affinity for her ex, Tom (played by the tall glass of chocolate milk known as Billy Brown), who is the son of Benny (played by Danny Glover), the crime boss Mary works for. Yes, she likes him even though she gives him a hard time but, unlike the usual trope of most films that have a woman as a lead, she doesn’t like him more than she likes herself. She refuses to be a sacrificial lamb for his reciprocity and that’s empowering. Her home is beautiful; the kind of dream home only money can buy – high ceilings, mahogany furniture complemented by deep blues and oranges, a fridge with a touch screen on it…
Murder is a lucrative business for Mary. But the entire art department needs to be commended. From the Isaac Hayes mural in Benny’s office to the family home of a slain crime boss, everything is sophisticated.
Proud Mary is enjoyable, especially because of the easy chemistry between Henson and the kid, Benny (played by Jahi Di’Allo Winston), but it’s not a perfect film. And not just because Mary made Benny eggs for lunch. Eggs, fam! There’s a corny moment when Benny meets Danny and harps on about the name Danny. It’s just weird.
There’s also too much Maserati product placement. We see that car and its grill all the damn time.
The song selection is a superb mix of ’70s soul and Anthony Hamilton and, of course, Tina Turner’s version of Proud Mary comes up, probably not where you’d expect it though.
Many critics slated Proud Mary but it’s fun.