STARRING: MAGGIE Q, SAMUEL L. JACKSON, MICHAEL KEATON, AND RAY FEARON
DIRECTOR: MARTIN CAMPBELL
DATE: AUGUST 20, 2021
Hollywood throughout the years has done many female assassin films with some being good such as Colombiana and others being down right bad like Ballistic: Ecks vs Sever. So going into Protege’ I really didn’t know what to expect. Maggie Q, who played a female assassin in the TV show entitled Nikita seemed like good casting while having veterans such as Samuel L. Jackson and Michael Keaton piqued my interest. The film, directed by Martin Campbell, has grossed $7.9 million in its first 3 weeks of being released.
The Protoge’ begins in DA Nang, Vietnam in 1991 when Moody (Samuel L. Jackson) rescues Anna (Maggie Q) from a life altering situation. The film then shifts to present day where the viewing audience learns that Moody and Anna are contract killers who will murder anyone for the right price. The direction for the film has a way of making the viewer empathize with the characters by seeing Moody as this menacing but kind father figure to Anna while Anna is presented as this intelligent, well cultured book store owner who eventually wants peace and harmony in her life.
One of the most intriguing characters in the film is Michael Rembrandt (Michael Keaton) who is a breath of fresh air. He’s suave, debonair, handsome, and one of the most lethal killers in the world. The chemistry between Anna and Rembrandt was magical as the two dangerously flirted with one another throughout the entire film. The two had one of the most sexually intense fight scenes in cinematic history and to say Michael Keaton is 70-years-old his fight scenes mirrored that of a 20-year-old.
The film, which was nothing more than a killing fest with relatively no plot, was decent entertainment for 1 hour and 49 minutes. The fight scenes were gory, well choreographed and at times intense. Due to its lack luster box office numbers, I doubt very seriously that there will be a sequel to this although the ending does leave the window open.