The Old Guard
Where: Netflix
Available: Now
Rated: R for sequences of graphic violence and language
Runtime: utes
Stars (of 4): 66¼
2 hours, 4 min
That Andy so often is a downer should really hurt “The Old Guard,” but because Theron — also a producer on the film — is so talented, her performance helps to make it an action flick worth checking out as it debuts on Netflix.
It’s a chance to see Theron back in a buttkicking mode that recalls her turns as Imperator Furiosa in 2015’s “Mad Max: Fury Road” and Lorraine Broughton in 2017’s oh-so-fun “Atomic Blonde,” even if “The Old Guard” isn’t quite in the class of those movies.
The rest of her quartet — Booker (Matthias Schoenaerts, “Red Sparrow”), Joe (Marwan Kenzari, “Aladdin”) and Nicky (Luca Marinelli, “Martin Eden”) — are able to convince her to take the job, which is offered up by an ex- CIA operative, Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor).
When they arrive at the site in South Sudan, though, they do not find what they are looking for and are ambushed. Hammered with bullets, they fall to the floor in a heap. By the time they spring back to life, their attackers have stopped paying close attention to them and are relatively easy prey, Andy really going to town on a few of them.
Moments later, Andy stares into a camera and realizes they have been set up to be filmed. Copley, who is watching the video feed, is working for a pharmaceutical company whose CEO, Merrick (Harry Melling), believes their blood can be used for an incredibly profitable drug and wants them captured.
Meanwhile, in Afghanistan, a young marine named Nile (Kiki Layne) is killed by a man her unit was hunting. Or so everyone thinks until she awakens a short time later, the fatal gash in her neck gone. Her friends know not what to make of her, and the government is sending her away to be studied. Before that can happen, however, Andy shows up, knocks her out and takes her from the base.
When she wakes, Nile is, understandably, confused — she doesn’t believe she is what Andy says even after being shot by her and, in return, stabbing Andy — and doesn’t want the life the mysterious woman is offering.
It’s clear, however, that all near-immortal types are linked, as Nile had dreamed of them and they of her. Nile does join the team, of course, even if she’s still having thoughts about reconnecting with her family.
Along with having two talented women up front in Theron and Layne — a star of 2018’s acclaimed “If Beale Street Could Talk” who makes Nile instantly compelling — on screen, “The Old Guard” has a skilled woman behind the camera, as well, in Gina Prince-bythewood. She made people take note with her strong debut in 2000, “Love and Basketball,” and since has directed “The Secret Life of Bees” and “Beyond the Lights,” all three of which she also wrote.