The Protege (Martin Campbell, 2021)

 When her mentor (Samuel L. Jackson) is murdered, an assassin (Maggie Q) goes on the run to find his killers. 

I am a big fan of Martin Campbell’s movies. I do not think he makes enough of them. 

Sadly his forte is in action and adventure movies, which are not made that frequently. If you want action nowadays, it generally involves superheroes. And the reason why Martin Campbell has not made a lot of movies recently is because he tried a superhero movie once, and it did not work out.

So when I saw the advertising for his latest action thriller The Protege, I was excited.

So it is disappointing as a fan to say that this is the sloppiest Campbell picture I have seen. The editing is off, the sets look cheap and some of the action shows the stunt doubles.

 

The bigger issue is that the movie cannot figure out what it wants to do. 

The movie wants to be a character study about assassins, a murder mystery and a twisted romance. The problem is that none of these elements work on their own, and the movie is so evenly focused on all three that it all feels like a muddle.

Campbell is at his best with a simple scenario based around characters with clearly defined personalities which can be conveyed through action.

This script does not fit his strengths.The mystery has no real stakes and the personal story is leaden. And while there are action sequences, aside from showcasing Q’s professionalism and improvisational skills, the character remains a bit vague.

Q is an action star who Hollywood has failed to figure out. While I enjoyed watching her in this movie and she does well with the action sequences, it felt like something was missing. 

The most potentially  interesting element of the movie is the relationship between Q and Michael Keaton’s henchman.

I think they are supposed to be attracted because of their shared life experience, but the movie does not spend enough time developing either their personalities or why they would be attracted to each other.

Another issue is that Maggie Q has more spark with Jackson than with Keaton.

Keaton is on solid form but the lack of chemistry works against him.

Perversely, this does give their rapport a weird tension because it never feels like they share the same feelings about each other. That is not the same as effective.

The Protege is not a good movie. Here is hoping Q and Campbell find better vehicles for their talents.

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