Criminal

Director: Ariel Vromen
Writers: Douglas Cook, David Weisberg
Stars: Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot
Strength: Action, Acting
Weakness: Plot
Runtime: 113 minutes
Rating: 2/5

PLOT: In a last-ditch effort to stop a diabolical plot, a dead CIA operative's memories, secrets, and skills are implanted into a death-row inmate in hopes that he will complete the operative's mission.

REVIEW: The movie begins in London with Bill Pope (Ryan Reynolds), a CIA operative on the run from a powerful anarchist (Jordi Mollà), as he has a highly confidential program that could topple governments. However, Bill takes the secret to his grave. The U.S. military activates a test program in order to recover the critical information. A neurosurgeon (Tommy Lee Jones) transplants Bill's memories into the consciousness of Jericho Stewart (Kevin Costner), a brain damaged, pitiless psychopath. 

The first thing that is noticeable about Criminal was its resemblance in concept to the 1997 classic Face/Off and the 2015 film, Self/less, also starring Ryan Reynolds, about a man who gets a new body after dying from illness and so on. The lead roles of this film are Costner with his psychopathic violence, Oldman, who will not stop at any cost to rid the terrorists, and Jones, the humble surgeon swept up in the slaughter. Kudos to the action sequences, without which the film would have been a disaster. The absurd plot and poor direction are sure to disappoint, but that is not all. The high expectations from Gal Gadot, especially since she is playing the imperative female role in the film, are also a big letdown. There was a significant presence of plot holes and inconsistencies that left the narrative incomplete, and it was up to the cast and their charismas to work out some geniality. Unfortunately it's not enough to keep you fixed to your seats. Criminal fails to achieve the potential to rope in movie goers. However, for a change, it was interesting to watch Costner's dark turn as he is rarely seen in a negative role.

Reviewed by Minam Haque