Red Sparrow Is An Empty Spy Thriller With Only A Dark Tone And Poor Treatment of Women To Its Name

CONTENT WARNING: DESCRIPTIONS AND DISCUSSIONS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT ARE BELOW 

A dour tone is not a bad element for a movie to have. It can be a quite useful element in fact! Just look at classic movies like Bicycle Thieves, Ordet or Au Hasard Balthazar, all motion pictures with a somber atmosphere that make that downtrodden aesthetic because it suits the story they're telling. A well-done bleak movie can be incredibly powerful to watch, but on the other hand, a film that mistakes the act of being grim for being inherently contemplative is one that can get tiring to watch awful quickly. Red Sparrow, the newest collaboration between director Francis Lawrence and Jennifer Lawrence after their work together on the Hunger Games sequels, is very much one of those movies that doesn't know how to properly use its solemn tone.

North By Northwest Review (Classic Write-Up)

It's practically become a custom for modern spy movies to incorporate the plot thread of a normal person (typically the lead character) getting wrapped up in spy shenanigans to sometimes humorous, other times dramatic, effect. Just look at offerings from 2010 onward like Cars 2, Killers, Bridge Of Spies, Argo, Abduction and (kinda) Salt. It's easy to see why this storytelling device is utilized frequently since it allows for the lead character to engage in high-concept spy going-ons while also being the type of everyday individual the audience can immediately relate to. Perhaps Alfred Hitchcock could be considered a "hipster" in this one case, since he was utilizing that plot scenario "before it was cool" way back in 1959 with his (rightfully) acclaimed motion picture North By Northwest.