Naomi Scott | Screenlife Reviews

Of all the franchises begging to be brought back to the silver screen, Charlie’s Angels was not one that was high on too many people’s wish list. The early 2000’s films featuring Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu and Cameron Diaz were fine enough action films, if somewhat disposable, but the chemistry of the core cast was enough to leave most with fond memories of the franchise. Enter the 2019 reboot/sequel starring Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and newcomer Ella Balinska; a surprisingly fun, upbeat action film that ultimately succeeds thanks to solid performances from its core trio and by never taking itself too seriously. Whilst its message of “girl power” is a little ham-fisted and unsubtle in its delivery, and the plot is about as cookie cutter as it gets – straight out of 2000’s action cinema – there is never a dull moment and for a Charlie’s Angel movie released in 2019, that’s far better than what was to be expected.

The “angels” are a team of female super spies from around the world coordinated into one cohesive task force called the Townsend Agency, led by the ever present, yet never seen “Charlie”. Beneath Charlie are his lieutenants – all codenamed “Bosley”,- just to be intentionally confusing – men and women from intelligence operations around the world who act as direct liaisons to the agents in the field and mentor them through their rigorous training process. When the agency receives a call from Elena (Naomi Scott) about the potential weaponising of Callisto, the renewal power source she has created for boss Alexander Brock (Sam Claflin), it sets off a chain reaction of mayhem as multiple parties vie for control of the device. Bosley (Elizabeth Banks) sends in two of her top agents to protect Elena and prevent anyone else from getting their hands on the device; Sabina (Kristen Stewart) and Jane (Ella Balinska), and what follows is a series of twists and turns, all fairly predictable, as the three girls learn to work together and become a sisterhood in order to save the day.

Charlie’s Angels really shouldn’t work as well as it does and that success all comes down to the script, written by Banks (pulling triple duty by also starring and directing). She mixes the early 2000 tropes with a 2019 view on women – confident, self-assured spies who can do anything and get the job done – to great effect. You understand that these women are trained killers and the world is at stake yet it’s all just so ridiculous and fun, as the whole team slings one-liners at each other whilst they escape numerous close encounters with evil henchmen. Whilst the script is solid in the way it handles the tropes of the genre and its humour, it falls down in the story, which is simply plot development after plot development to put the spies in a variety of fun locations or situations. It doesn’t make sense and is full of loop holes and leaps in reality which just aren’t justifiable. It’s the kind of film that would rather hit you with a montage of random girls doing activities like riding horses or surfing to portray the message that girls can do anything, rather than spending the time to build up a story that makes a bit of sense and shows that these girls are actually in danger of not making it out alive. It doesn’t derail the show as it’s clear from the opening scene that this is not in any way going to be a serious film, but it just would go that extra mile to raise the stakes and allow for some investment in the characters beyond their surface level personalities.

Banter is the name of the game here and while the interplay between the cast makes the film, the characters are surprisingly one note, barely going beyond surface level or digging into anybody’s motives or psyche. Having said that, there are no weak links in the cast and everybody plays their characters competently enough. Kristen Stewart shows a new side of herself that audiences may be taken aback by, as the spunky spy Sabina, easily the most energetic member of the cast, showcasing a mix of deadpan and wisecracking comedy that will no doubt surprise. She’s come a long way since her Twilight days, appearing in a host of indie dramas over the years since the monster franchise wrapped up and her re-entry to mainstream blockbuster cinema is a breath of fresh air. There’s still that same brooding somewhat closed-off energy that remains from Twilight but the role is perfect to show off her other talents, both action and comedy, and this should go a long way to boosting her prominence in more blockbuster work, should she choose to go that route.

Naomi Scott gets the most traditional story arc of anyone in the film as Elena, going from timid whistleblower to reasonably competent super spy, but it all feels so rushed, with the transition happening in less time than the film takes to bust out an Ariana Grande song (of which there are many). Scott is the audience surrogate here, showing us the mysterious Townsend Agency from an outsider’s perspective, but there’s only so long you can watch her open mouthed look of surprise before it gets stale. She’s fine in the role and won’t be going anywhere, coming off a solid year between this and the recent Aladdin reboot. Ella Balinska rounds out the core trio as the emotionally shut-off lone wolf Jane, a former MI6 operative turned angel who must learn to trust her teammates if they have any hope of succeeding. She’s surprisingly the strongest of the trio, really selling herself as the emotionally damaged spy who has clearly suffered in her former job. Her arc feels the most earned and while it is not as central as Elena’s it is surprisingly emotional and cathartic and Balinska hits all the beats surprisingly well, considering this is one of her first big roles.

At a time when theatres have been mostly dominated by drama and horror, Charlie’s Angels provides a high-octane shot of adrenaline: full of big, bombastic, explosion-filled set pieces and zingers a-plenty. Whilst the story won’t set the world on fire and the characters are all a bit one-note, the cast playing them is clearly having so much fun that it becomes infectious. The jokes land when they need to and the pace moves at a clip, making this an easy, breezy enjoyable time at the movies or a shot of fun at home on a boring Sunday afternoon.

Charlie’s Angels stars Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott, Ella Balinska, Elizabeth Banks, Patrick Stewart & Sam Claflin – In cinemas now.

Disney has been on a mission lately to remake almost every animated film they’ve ever created in live-action form. It’s been a bit of a mixed bag so far as we’ve had some lows (Bill Condon’s Beauty and the Beast and Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland films), some highs (Kenneth Branagh’s Cinderella and Mark Webb’s Christopher Robin) and one genuinely great entry (Jon Favreau’s The Jungle Book). Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin sits firmly in the middle of the pack; a serviceable remake with some great musical performances and timely additions to the narrative that work for the most part, but one that fails to recapture the magic of the original animated classic – overusing CGI spectacle instead of meaningful character moments at times.

If you’re unfamiliar with the story (which is unlikely) it revolves around Aladdin (Mena Massoud), a young man living on the impoverished streets of the Arabian city of Agrabah who resorts to thievery in order to survive. His life changes forever once he meets the Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott) and falls head over heels in love. Yet the evil Jafar (Marwan Kenzari), adviser to the Sultan (Navid Negahban), has other plans for Aladdin which involve him retrieving a lamp that holds an ancient Genie (Will Smith) – bound to grant his master any three wishes. With the Genie’s help, Aladdin attempts to win over Jasmine’s affection whilst Jafar plots his revenge and retrieval of the lamp. The core plot of Aladdin remains unchanged from the 1992 original, with a few additional songs and scenes thrown in to appeal to a more modern audience. These tend to revolve around the Princess Jasmine’s inability to rule Agrabah after her father’s reign is over, as according to law she must marry a prince who will rule with her by his side. Enter Billy Magnussen as Prince Anders, one of Princess Jasmine’s suitors, who steals every scene he’s in with some great comedic timing and a truly awful accent. It’s easily the best of the new story added which makes it somewhat frustrating that there’s so little of it. The film seems more focused on faithfully recreating the original with a sprinkle of something new here and there that it never really embraces the new content, even when it’s done so well.

This leads to another disappointing aspect of the film: its direction. Few can argue that nabbing Guy Ritchie (director of Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) was an inspired choice out of left-field. Known for directing more hardcore action films, hiring him to direct a family musical was certainly out of the ordinary. Ritchie had been increasingly dipping his toe into films with a wider audience (his Sherlock Holmes films were a smash at the box office) and this marks his biggest and most widespread film to date. It’s a real shame that Ritchie’s style here simply doesn’t really translate. Gone are the inventive camera movements and gritty shooting styles of his earlier films, replaced by a big studio sheen and over-reliance on CGI. Whilst one can argue that this was hardly a film that called for a gritty style, Agrabah as a city just seems fake and I never bought that it was a lived-in place riddled with poverty – despite what the narrative wants you to believe. There are a few scenes where Ritchie gets a chance to show off – most notably Aladdin’s adventure in the Cave of Wonders to secure the lamp – with some dynamic camera angles and fast paced action making it a highlight of the film. Whilst Ritchie’s style from his earlier work doesn’t particularly come across, he shows a remarkable affinity for directing the musical portions of the film.

Music plays a huge role in this interpretation of Aladdin as it did in the original. Huge crowd-pleasing numbers like “A Whole New World” and “Friend Like Me” are terrific and a testament to the magic of Disney and the lasting impact these songs have had on popular culture. Will Smith, himself an established artist, gets to showcase his musical prowess on “Arabian Nights” and “Friend Like Me”, the latter perfectly suited to his natural charisma and charm as he belts out the huge anthem. This particular song makes full use of the expansive budget given to the film, with CGI filling the screen as the Genie shows off his magic. Ritchie directs the hell out of this scene as it cuts between the Genie’s over-the-top exclamations and Aladdin’s bewildered face to brilliant comedic effect. Massoud and Scott’s performance of “A Whole New World” is also a bright point of the film, as we follow them over various exotic locations on the magic carpet. It’s one of the few moments that we really gain an understanding of the connection between Aladdin and Jasmine and it tells the story of their love better than anything had previously in the film.

Massoud and Smith are the standouts here, both bringing bucketloads of charisma to their roles. It’s not exactly a surprise from Smith, who lights up the screen in just about every role, but it shouldn’t be overlookd. His rendition of “Friend Like Me”, as I mentioned, is a highlight of the film for sure – but Smith also shows some restraint here and doesn’t let his star power overshadow the rest of the film, often taking a backseat to Aladdin’s exploits. As someone who was worried this might become “The Will Smith Show” I was glad that he wasn’t the focal point and it was definitely a case of less is more, as each scene with Smith had the crowd in riots as he flexed his comedic muscles. Mena Massoud is a revelation here, clearly relishing the opportunity to play this role as he imbues the character with a charm and depth that rivals the original. He also brings some serious vocal chops to the table – the way he belts out his solo tune “One Jump Ahead” will have you believing he moonlights as a professional singer when he’s not acting. Naomi Scott, while competent in the role of Jasmine, doesn’t really have a whole lot to do in the film and is, in a way, just along for the ride with Aladdin. It’s a shame given the talents of Scott, but she does make up for the lack of screentime by having a lasting impact with her singing scenes, particularly “A Whole New World” and new song “Speechless”. Marwan Kenzari rounds out the core cast as Jafar and he was definitely the weakest point of the film, opting for over-the-top theatrics and yelling instead of genuinely sinister dialogue. Jafar never seemed like a real threat in the scheme of things, every time he presented a new challenge for Aladdin it was overcome so swiftly and easily that you wonder why he doesn’t just kill him to stop all the annoyances he causes. There’s simply not enough thought given to why Jafar actually wants this power, and the reason he gives in the film is flimsy at best.

Overall Aladdin is a well made, if underwhelming entry into the Disney live-action remake catalogue – meeting the brief in bringing the story of the street thief turned prince to a new audience. The musical performances and work of Mena Massoud and Will smith make up for the weak performance of Marwan Kenzari and the lack of flair in direction and narrative. For those looking for a complete reimagining of the Aladdin tale this is not that, but for those wishing to see the characters and songs of their youth brought to the big screen in a new style, with some new content thrown in for good measure, this is a solid choice and a fun trip to the movies.

Aladdin starts Mena Massoud, Will Smith, Naomi Scott, Marwan Kenzari, Nasim Pedrad, Navid Negahban and Billy Magnussen and is in cinemas now.