With Joe Carnahan at the helm, one would think that he would be able to elevate his latest film, Shadow Force, with the same verve employed in the severely underappreciated Boss Level, which had a familiar story with hyperkinetic aesthetics reminiscent of Tom Tykwer’s Lola rennt. Shadow Force doesn’t reinvent the wheel in the story department, nor is it treading on never-before-seen material. However, with such a strong formalist like Carnahan in the director’s chair, one now expects from him a standard of action movie craftsmanship that few have in this economy, while also further exploiting the talents of Omar Sy, after he made an explosive debut as an action star in John Woo’s incredible reinterpretation of The Killer last year.
Unfortunately, the action is the weakest part of Carnahan’s latest movie, barring a few moments of raw poetry that shows us a glimpse of how he perceives an action scene. The final confrontation between Isaac (Omar Sy), Kyrah (Kerry Washington) and the main antagonist, Jack Cinder (Mark Strong), contains the most potent audiovisual marriage of the entire film, with the sound muffling at precise moments to envelop us in its storytelling, as a precise rack focus tells us exactly how this battle will end. It acts as a shock to the system when we see it fully executed, yet none of the other action sequences are like this.
Most of them are either poorly shot or haphazardly edited. Disappointingly so, Carnahan sets up a Mad Max-esque car chase early in the movie where Isaac, Kyrah, and their son Ky (Jahleel Kamara) have to escape a horde of disposable baddies that were previous “Shadow Force” team members when Isaac and Kyrah were on the other side. The conceit of that car chase looks to give Guillaume Pierret’s Last Bullet a run for its money, as the thick fog ensures they can’t see anything, while cars and motorcycles nearing him are throwing bright red flares to exacerbate the smoke in the air. Yet, that’s as far as Carnahan and cinematographer Juan Azpiroz go in staging such a large-scale car chase, because it ends as quickly as it begins.
Everything else, from a final shootout at a beach island to close, one-on-one confrontations, is painfully generic and surprisingly unmemorable for such an ace craftsman who gave us some of the best genre films of the past two decades, with Narc, Smokin’ Aces, The Grey, and Stretch. No one can tell if it was indeed Carnahan who made the film, with the exception of fleeting glimpses of his style, especially in how he stages Omar Sy’s muscular physique as an imposing figure for the bad guys to fear, relishing his body in slow motion as he cocks a gun on a knife lodged in someone’s neck. It’s violent perversion like this that reminds us that the man who brought these aforementioned films to us directed it, because the story itself, of a family of ex-special forces operatives on the run by old connections who are sent to kill them, has been visualized countless times in film, most recently in Netflix’s ridiculously forgettable Back in Action.
Omar Sy and Kerry Washington Shine in Shadow Force
However, unlike that film, Carnahan compensates the lack of compelling action scenes with real alchemy between Sy, Washington, and the adorable Jahleel Kamara, who frequently steals the spotlight during scenes of high-spirited comedy, notably when discussing songs to play on the car, with Lionel Richie’s "Truly" used as a leitmotiv, or when interacting with Unc (Method Man) and Auntie (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), two operatives helping Isaac and Kyrah put Cinder behind bars. It’s in those two storylines – Isaac and Kyrah/Unc and Auntie – where the movie actually works. Both pairs of actors work so well together, and immediately make us believe in their partnership, either on a profoundly intimate level for Isaac and Kyrah, or in the dysfunctional team of Unc and Auntie, with Method Man being the true agent of chaos that almost blows their cover countless times.
These recurring gags add levity to an otherwise dour and surprisingly patient movie that builds upon Isaac and Kyrah’s relationship in a way that feels profoundly meaningful. It’s less of a piece of mindless “content” like Back in Action, because Carnahan and co-screenwriter Leon Chills genuinely care about developing a potent connection between the married couple who must finish the job to move on with their lives. These slow, and genuinely emotional, sequences are at the heart of what makes Shadow Force ultimately work, and it wouldn’t have been possible without Sy’s effervescent on-screen charm and Washington’s towering dramatic intensity, used sparingly in moments they need the most.
Letting Sy speak French for the bulk of the runtime was also a smart decision on Carnhan’s part, because it lets him add a tangible connection with Ky, who continuously learns the language with his father. And as a French speaker myself, seeing the language used at pivotal dramatic turns, to express a feeling the English language simply cannot translate the same way, is honestly quite impressive. These lines cut deeper than a knife, and lets us emotionally connect to their journey, as shoddy as the action scenes may be, and as formulaic as the story is.
It ultimately didn’t matter if Carnahan’s action skills weren’t on top form for this movie, even if it was the main draw. He was still able to create a potent character drama that kept us going for the majority of his runtime and made Shadow Force as entertaining as he could. Though one knows that, for the filmmaker, his next event will occur later in the year, with the Ben Affleck/Matt Damon-starring RIP. This film, on the other hand, was just a nice little primer for Carnahan’s return to his Narc glory days, and the anticipation can’t be higher.