The 355
Action-packed and a lot of fun.
When a mysterious and potentially world-ending device falls into mercenary hands, a wild card CIA agent named Mace (Jessica Chastain) is sent with her US Intelligence partner Nick (Sebastian Stan) to orchestrate a drop and buy it from Luis Rojas (Edgar Ramirez). But she isn’t the only one on hand. Players from all different countries, professions and with all different motivations enter the game, and once Mace suffers a personal tragedy, she realises she has to go out on a limb. She teams up with four international agents to retrieve the device before it falls into the wrong hands; German Marie Schmidt (Diane Kruger), brit Khadijah Adiyeme (Lupita Nyong’o), Spaniard Graciela Rivera (Penelope Cruz) and, late in the game, a Chinese agent by the name of Lin Mi Sheng (Bingbing Fan).
Directed by Simon Kinberg, the first thing to understand about The 355, named after the mysterious nameless female agent operating during the US Civil War, is that it isn’t going to shock or surprise you in the least. This film doesn’t set out whatsoever to change the game, except perhaps in the novelty of having an all female team, or even having such an international team. That being said, there’s something to be said for, and admired about, something you know being done well. Which is why it’s such a joy to say that The 355 is, indeed, done well.
Each of the main cast (perhaps with the exception of Bingbing Fan, who doesn’t have nearly as much screen time given her character’s late entry into the piece) rounds out a distinct personality, with charm and a certain amount of kick-assery. As the two fighters of the group, Mace and Marie are both formidable, and their professional rivalry but personal friendship feels lived in and believable. Chastain and Kruger bring a mammoth amount of action to the piece, and their bouts feel dangerous and formidable.
Meanwhile, Khadijah and Graciela, coming from a tech and a psychology background respectively, are also competent and feel like strong, rounded additions to the team. Whereas in other films, these two roles might have been kept out of the action, here both get a chance to fire weapons and face explosions and fistfights. It makes the team dynamic as a whole function incredibly well.
In general, one of the greatest positives for the film is that it’s a lot of fun. Whether the gang is infiltrating a massive blackmarket auction, or delivering the last rites to a betrayer, there’s a tongue in cheek sense of style to the entire movie that brings a lot of joy. Couple that with some honestly great action stuntwork, and you have a winner on your hands.
While there are a couple of moments of questionability (a significant number of executions towards the end of the film felt a little much), and there isn’t a lot new on display, The 355 is undeniably a lot of fun, and a well made action film. We can’t wait to see where this premise goes next.one who loves dramatic tension, great storytelling, and beautiful cinematography should make a beeline for it.
