Based on the Danish film of the same name, The Guilty follows Jake Gyllenhaal’s disgraced detective-turned-911 operator Joe Baylor on one slow night that evolves into a life-altering experience after receiving a terrifying call. Having previously worked with him on boxing drama Southpaw, Gyllenhaal enlists director Antoine Fuqua to helm what should be a completely edge-of-your-seat thriller; a film seemingly purpose built to showcase the incredible acting chops of its lead. While it absolutely delivers on that front, the story sags in the middle – the material not as engaging as the performance – on its way to a poignant and tragic finale that may not leave you as satisfied as you would like.
Following in the vein of films like Tom Hardy’s Locke, The Guilty takes place entirely within the confines of an emergency services operations centre – a device that works both to the film’s benefit and detriment – as Joe desperately struggles to locate distraught caller Emily (Riley Keough), who has seemingly been kidnapped by husband Henry (Peter Sarsgaard). All the action between Emily and Henry is played out entirely through phone conversations, as Joe attempts to extract as much information from the hostage as fast as he can under the guise of a call to her daughter (a thrilling sequence) amid furious denied requests to dispatch to have police sweep the area.
Netflix, 2021
From the moment this phone call comes through Joe’s line there is a profound atmosphere of tension; we feel Joe’s desperation increasing with each passing moment and failed attempt to reconnect with Emily. Adding an extra wrinkle to the affair is the recent breakdown of his marriage and an ongoing mystery surrounding an appointment the next day that is clearly causing Joe a lot of stress. This is a man on the edge and Gyllenhaal completely owns it, his prickly demeanour growing into full blown rage and temper tantrums as he struggles to obtain control of yet another aspect of his life that is slipping through his fingers. It’s a career highlight performance for the star/producer to be sure; it is only due to Gyllenhaal’s charisma and commitment to the role that we’re kept invested in Joe’s story to the bitter end.
Unfortunately that story loses steam not long after the fateful phone call, as proceedings slow to what feels like an endless stream of fruitless calls; to fellow detectives, to Joe’s wife, to other emergency services. It serves to compound Joe’s frustrations but unfortunately puts the audience in the same boat, growing ever weary of the monotony and close to checking out. Thankfully the plot kicks back into gear with a breakneck final thirty minutes, as Joe’s personal and professional problems combine in a beautifully tragic yet cathartic way, but it doesn’t do much to hide the fact that this already short 90 minute film only has about an hour of story truly worth telling.
Netflix, 2021
The Guilty without its star simply isn’t as compelling a film as it is with Gyllenhaal’s immense on-screen talents. Able to carry us through even the most tepid of telephone conversations, the journey through Joe Baylor’s psyche is wholly engrossing even if his immediate situation loses momentum at times. The supporting voice cast is stacked and Fuqua does what he can with interesting direction, but at the end of the day this is purely a performance piece for its star and in the question of “does Gyllenhaal nail it?” he can only be found guilty.
Netflix, 2021
The Guilty stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Ethan Hawke, Riley Keough, Peter Sarsgaard, Christina Vidal, Adrian Martinez, Eli Goree & Paul Dano – Streaming on Netflix now.
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man has come a long way. From the first time he swung into frame in Captain America: Civil War to say “Hey everyone”, audiences knew there was something special about his interpretation of the character. Holland has continued to prove himself as the best actor to pull on the red and blue tights, nailing Peter Parker’s internal conflict that comes from balancing crime fighting and schoolwork, and the character’s development through his solo film and the previous two Avengers films has been one of the strongest points of the MCU. With Spider-Man: Far From Home,returning director Jon Watts is able to craft a solid, imperfect conclusion to this Spider-Man arc which nails the character of Peter Parker and the acrobatic action he brings to the table, but also gets bogged down at times by some odd character choices and pacing issues. Just in case you’ve been living under a rock and are one of the three people who haven’t made it out to see Avengers: Endgame, a warning: spoilers lie ahead.
Peter Parker has been having a rough go of it lately. After being dusted and effectively wiped from existence in Avengers: Infinity War and revived five years later, the youngster is having a tough time readjusting to life post “Blip” – the name given to Thanos’ snap. A relaxing summer European vacation with his classmates is the perfect opportunity to hang up the spider-suit for a while and spend some quality time with his crush MJ (Zendaya). Peter, and the world at large, is struggling with the recent death of Iron Man and the fracturing of the Avengers as a result. A great amount of pressure has been placed on Spider-Man as Iron Man’s replacement, a problem which is only exacerbated when Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) highjacks Peter’s school trip in order to help Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal), also known as Mysterio, defeat a new world-ending threat – Elementals: physical embodiments of earth, wind, fire and water who destroy everything in their path. Peter soon finds his priorities divided between living a normal life with his friends and getting the girl and rising to the challenge to help Fury and Beck, taking Tony Stark’s place in the process. After the earth-shattering events of Endgame, the story here feels comparatively smaller, a more intimate film that is less about world-ending catastrophes than it is about exploring the psyche of Peter. It takes a little time to get used to the smaller stakes here but, much like last year’s Ant-Man and the Wasp, it is refreshing antidote to Endgame and a nice way to close out phase three of the MCU.
Marvel, 2019
The strongest aspect of Far From Home is how it handles Peter’s personal struggles following the death of Iron Man. Not only has he lost a true friend and mentor, but he’s also lost his way in terms of being a superhero, opting to step away from the limelight and just be a kid for a change. The film really zeroes in on the responsibility placed on Peter and how he handles it; he is presented with challenge after challenge – making some missteps along the way – on his way to deciding where his future lies. Some of these missteps, which I won’t get into to avoid spoilers, are handled better than others, with a few moments leaving audiences scratching their heads as to why on earth Peter made that specific choice. Sure, you could chalk it up to him being a teenager, but doing so robs Spider-Man of the intelligence that is inherent to the character. With Iron Man’s death Peter is subconsciously searching for another mentor to put his trust in and to guide him with his choices. Enter Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio, who Peter develops a bond with as they fight the Elementals together. Holland and Gyllenhaal have great chemistry together, clearly influenced by their real life friendship, and watching the characters develop their bond is one of the highlights of the film. Gyllenhall plays the role of Quentin Beck with a confidence and bravado that attracts Peter, qualities that make him a surrogate in Peter’s eyes for the late Tony Stark. It’s an interesting plot thread to pull on; watching Peter doubt himself and desperately search for guidance when Tony believed he was the one to carry the torch going forward.
In addition to exploring Peter’s internal mental struggles, the film also mixes in a healthy dose of romance with the burgeoning relationship between Parker and MJ. It’s a fun plotline which helps to emphasise the kind of normal life that Peter longs for, a life that is constantly hindered and kept out of his grasp by his responsibilities as Spider-Man. MJ is given a much more fleshed out role this time around and Zendaya revels in playing the odd, socially awkward teenager. The random truth bombs and scathing retorts she fires off are always hilarious and she is by far the best of the younger cast in the film outside of Holland, who also dials up the social awkwardness in his exchanges with MJ. It’s almost too hard to not turn away and cringe at some of the dialogue and it really works to make the characters feel like kids finding their way to expressing their feelings for one another. This rom-com storyline adds a fresh layer to the average Spider-Man adventure, with past films often playing the romance much more seriously, highlighting the depressing aspects of Peter pining for MJ’s affections. Far From Home is first and foremost fun, and it goes a long way in investing you in the characters and their predicaments.
Marvel, 2019
When Homecoming was first released people were excited for the first time to actually explore Peter Parker’s adventures in high school. The Maguire and Garfield Spider-Man films were also set in high-school but they never really took advantage of the setting or the simple but engaging premise of balancing school and hero fighting. (Add to that the fact that both Maguire and Garfield both looked like they hadn’t stepped foot in a school in twenty years). Homecoming was the first Spider-Man film to really live in that school environment and as such, brought a host of other teenagers in to occupy Peter’s world, including best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon), bully Flash Thompson (Tony Revolori), and classmate Betty Brant (Anjourie Rice). They all worked wonderfully in Homecoming where the stakes were comparably lower and at a more “friendly neighbourhood” level, but in Far From Home these characters become too much at times. They’re all played wonderfully and it’s understandable wanting to bring them back after how well they were received before but it almost always slows the pace of the film when we cut away from Peter’s adventures to check in with them. The film works best focusing on Peter and if these characters are taking away from his screentime and distract from the main plot then it might be time to jettison a few. That being said, I could watch an entire film of Martin Starr’s character Mr. Harrington struggle through literally every situation he is put in, with a can-do attitude and no luck in life whatsoever, he is hilarious and steals almost every scene he is in.
Spider-Man: Far From Home is a film which, like Peter Parker, has an enormous responsibility on its shoulders as the first MCU film to follow Avengers: Endgame. It largely lives up to the task, providing a fun, engaging Spider-Man story that explores one of the character’s oldest struggles: deciding whether to live a normal life or make the sacrifices necessary to be Spider-Man. While there are some pacing issues and questionable character decisions, it never detracts from your investment in the key characters, anchored by an always stellar performance from Tom Holland. Between this, the recent PS4 game and last year’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse we really are living in the golden age for the web-slinger. Here’s hoping we stay on the upswing for a little while longer.
Marvel, 2019
Spider-Man: Far From Home stars Tom Holland, Zendaya, Samuel L. Jackson, Marisa Tomei, Cobie Smulders, Jon Favreau, Jacob Batalon, Tony Revolori & Jake Gyllenhaal – in cinemas now.
