The Gray Man
2022
**
Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jessica Henwick, Regé-Jean Page, Wagner Moura, Julia Butters, Dhanush, Alfre Woodard, Billy Bob Thornton
An unnamed prisoner is recruited as an assassin for the CIA's Sierra program. Several years later, someone from within the agency wants to end the program and eliminate the existing Sierra agents. This boring action movie cuts right to the chase. It introduces a skilled but emotionless hero we couldn't care less about. More than 30 minutes in, we suddenly get a flashback which attempts and fails to give the protagonist some human-like qualities. The Russo brothers directed some enthralling action in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, but here the set pieces range from mediocre to incomprehensible. The main issue, however, is that the script is utterly unoriginal. Ryan Gosling gives another stoic lead performance and Chris Evans fails to shine as a one-note villain. This is based on a book series by Mark Greaney, and a sequel is obviously in the works.
