Tag: terrorist

PROFILE (2018) – Review

In this new “ripped from the headlines” thriller, an intrepid reporter goes deep, deep undercover to get to the heart of a controversial story. Oh, and there are no car chases or meetings in dark alleyways. But there is the “dark web”. That’s because, in the most modern take on the “get the truth out there” suspense saga, the heroine never really leaves her modest London “flat”. She’s online, and we’re watching her on her very own computer desktop as she bounces from social media sites to search engines to video “tele-chats”. Still, the danger is very real, along with the truly disturbing subject. And the whole thing truly hinges on the believability of the reporter’s fictitious PROFILE.

The year is 2014. As the monitor screen “fires up”, we hear the “key clicks” entering a search request for news stories concerning women from the US and Europe who have been recruited online to become part of the Middle Eastern terrorist group known as Isis. We soon learn, via a “Skype” call with her boyfriend Matt (Morgan Watkins), that this is the computer of an ambitious freelance London-based journalist Amy (Valene Kane). Later she tries to put the “squeeze” on her editor Vicky (Christine Adams) for another advance (we’re not sure if this is for the online site of a print or broadcast news outlet). Ah, but the budget is tight, so Amy puts the “bite” on her rich, flighty pal Kathy (Emma Carer) in order to pay the rent. All this is happening as Amy creates a new online identity for herself: an aimless, lonely 20-year-old named Melody. First, she needs a “catfish” Facebook profile, with lots of links to stories and videos about the conflict in the world’s “hotspot”. And it’s not too long before she gets a “bite”, from the source of several of those borrowed posts, an Isis soldier in Syria named Bilel (Shazad Latif). Lots of “instant message” flirtations are followed up by requests for a “Skype” chat. Amy/Melody gets ready for their long-distance “hook-up” by cruising the search engines for tips on everything from how to properly wear the hijab to using makeup to take off “years” (Amy’s closer to 30 than 20). Finally, with Vicky’s IT guy Lou (Amir Rahimzadeh) listening in, the two meet “screen to screen”. Amy is at first amused by the affable charismatic Bilel (“He’s just a silly boy”) as he lays on the charm while questioning her commitment to “the cause”. But as the home side pressures mount, with Matt finding a home they can share to Vicky’s strict deadline (“You’ve got to get him to tell you how he transports the girls”), the unthinkable seems to occur: Amy, along with Melody, is falling for the dark-eyed “devil”. Could she turn her back on her beau and career in order to bask in Bilel’s smile and promises of love and wealth?

The whole story hinges on the actor “behind the keyboard”, so the producers wisely chose the compelling, and talented Kane to be our “cyber-guide”. Her Amy seems more than a little aimless, drinking and toking as Matt pleads with her to join him in domestic bliss. Luckily this assignment gives her a purpose, and through her eyes on that monitor, we see her rush of excitement as she walks the twisty online tightrope. She’s a bit of a danger “junkie”, though she still gets into a panic trying to quickly grasp the tech tidbits as Bilel keeps up his pursuit. And it’s in those eyes where we see her teeter, then plummet down the “rabbit hole”. But waiting to catch her is the exotic Bilel, reminding us a bit of the allure of Valentino’s sheik for the 21st century. He promises romance, often appearing to be a smitten schoolboy, while proudly displaying his tools of death and bragging of his killing skills, even while feeding a kitten. He’s the “dream lover” counterpart to the grounded Watkins, whose Matt tries to understand his fiance’s indifference as he dutifully maps out a budget (sensible but so dull). Adams, perhaps best known as the matriarch of the powerful Pierce family on TV’s “Black Lightning”, is a terrific tough boss, putting a modern “spin’ on the “Perry White” persona. There’s also great support from Rahimzadeh as the rattled and worried tech wizard and Cater as the ditzy BFF who loves to live dangerously, though vicariously through Amy.


This intimate tale seems quite a change of pace for director Timur Bekmambetov, who is perhaps best known for fast-paced explosive fantasy flicks (ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER is on his resume’). And somehow he retains much of that frenetic energy, as the multiple “tabs” all seem to pop in to nearly drawn Amy in distraction. It helps that the script provides an easily accessible roadmap (Timur along with Britt Poulton and Olga Kharina adapted the novel by Anna Erelle “In the Skin of a Jihadist”). And though several other films have used the computer screen as a movie screen idea (thrillers including SEARCHING with John Cho), this somehow feels fresh, perhaps due to the strong “inspired by true events” story. The suspense is carried along by the complex central character. Amy is no “one-note” noble hero, but rather a conflicted seeker of truth whose “real life’ helps makes her a “ripe” target for silky, cyber-seduction. While many other “potboilers” run out of steam by the third act, this one delivers a real surprising and shocking finale. To be honest, I was dreading this once I knew of its “desktop” format, but somehow I was drawn as the tumbling tabs ratcheted the tension. Utilizing (fairly) modern tech to tell a very human story, PROFILE is a powerhouse.


3.5 out of 4


PROFILE opens in select theatres on Friday, May 14, 2021

GOOD KILL – The Review

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GOOD KILL is one of those films that owes everything to its headlining actor. Written and directed by Andrew Niccol, the film is highly character-driven and heavy on the solemn, brooding emotional atmosphere. A well-written film, GOOD KILL wears its heart on its sleeve and makes no qualms about its political tendencies, but primarily is carried by its star’s performance.

Ethan Hawke plays Major Thomas Egan, a man resigned to spending the rest of his career in a metal box piloting unmanned drones via remote control joysticks. Egan has a wife and child, but has become distant and isolated within himself as he begins to question the ethics of his military and the morality of his actions under orders.

Niccol directs the film with enough prowess to maintain the viewer’s attention, but the down-trodden mood of the film occasionally takes its tole, leaving the audience wanting a touch of comic relief or adrenaline-refueling action from time to time, a desire never fulfilled. Recall viewing LEAVING LAS VEGAS, but tone it way down and transplant our central character from Sin City to the southwest desert and that’s where the film resides emotionally.

GOOD KILL addresses some very real, very important contemporary issues, even if they do already feel somewhat played out and old news, but the upside and unique twist is that the film focuses on how one man copes and assimilates all this heaviness internally and externally. We see how it affects his career, his family, and even his health. Egan suppresses his feelings, hif anger and remorse, leaving his wife neglected and in the dark as to what he finally does. Once he does finally let her in just a little as to what he does, its proves to be too little too late.

In keeping with a broader genre and thematic trend, Egan has also slipped into alcoholism. While dramatically appropriate and entirely believable, this aspect of Egan’s character generally plays out as cliche and stereotypical. Rather than adding to Egan’s character-development and story progression, the alcohol mainly just serves as visual texture and dramatic noise.

What conveys the emotional impact and harsh reality most clearly is Hawke’s performance. From his subdued vocal projection, his ability to pause and be silent more than is comfortable, his body language and especially his facial emotions and slight little gestures that say so much, this is where the strength of the film emerges. This means its also a film you need to watch attentively, really giving your full attention and mindfulness to Major Egan’s experience.

Supporting Hawke are Zoe Kravitz as Airman Vera Suarez and Bruce Greenwood as Lt. Colonel Jack Johns, his co-pilot and commanding officer, respectfully. Suarez spots the laser while Egan pilots the drone and ultimately pulls the trigger of the missile that will takes lives, all under the often reluctant command of Johns. The three central characters share a common philosophy and concern, but have taken very different paths in how they deal with these complex dilemmas.

Bruce Greenwood is perfectly cast as Egan’s commanding officer, serving as a sort of casual father-figure under the guidelines of the U.S. military. Johns understands Egan’s struggle, even empathizes, but also manages to keep his reactions and emotions in check, at least for a while. Kravitz, on the other hand, plays her part with reasonable confidence but ultimately I fear serves as marginally more than eye candy against a typically more male-driven culture. With that said, January Jones serves up a far more dramatically appropriate feminine role in Egan’s little slice of Hell as their relationship slows fizzles out and then ends with a bang, as does Egan’s career once all things have gone too far.

GOOD KILL, referring ironically to the military jargon used to confirm a successful missile strike, often feel artificial while the characters are at work in the glorified metal trailers from which they pilot the drones, but during these times in the over-sized sardine cans, we see tensions rising within Egan’s psyche and how its ripping him apart from the inside out when he leaves the box and spirals dangerously near oblivion in the real world. Fortunately, GOOD KILL does not end on an entirely negative note and we can feel even just a tad hopeful, courtesy of an optimistic open ending.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

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