Review by Angele Colageo
Pierce Brosnan returns to the spy action thriller genre; this time as Devereaux, the ex-CIA ops agent from the November Man series by Bill Granger. Brosnan brings his elegant demeanor to this incarnation of trained killer sans tux, tie and gadgetry of his previous roles.
The film opens with him mid-operation, training his protégé Mason (Luke Bracey) on the finer points of being an ops agent. Here, we are given a glimpse of the relationship between Devereaux and Mason. As a mentor, he teaches the inexperienced agent how to gauge and assess situations. At times, comes off as a father figure, scolding the younger agent for his missteps when we are shown Mason’s impulsive nature and how the lessons from his mentor apply as the story unfolds.
Flash forward five years after and Devereaux is retired, now living a gentler life as the owner of a small café. He is re-activated by Hanley (Bill Smitrovich), his longtime handler, to extract a deep cover asset. At the same time, the CIA head of the operation, Perry Weinstein (Will Patton) sets a team on retrieving the information that the asset holds. The asset, Natalia, puts Devereaux on the trail of the critical information which could change the political climate of Russia and impact the world order. This assignment brings him face to face with Mason (this time as his adversary) and introduces us to Alice Fournier (Olga Kuriyenko).
Fournier is a social worker that works with refugees from Chechen war. This has put her in the position of interest to many parties looking for information on a missing young woman. The young woman, Mila could be the lynchpin that brings down the Russian Presidency and time is running out for her as many are on the search for her and the information she holds.
We are taken on a ride through Belgrade as Devereaux and Fournier get closer to the truth while dodging Alexa, the Russian assassin and the CIA team with Mason at the helm. There are moments of suspense in the story where the tension is tightly drawn, leading one to anticipate a predictable resolution but then be surprised by the unexpected.
Brosnan is great to watch in action as he moves through the city working his spy game. Bracey (Another Aussie import, thank you Australia!) looks like he just has game with the ladies.
Directed by Roger Donaldson (The Bank Job & The Recruit), we are taken on a fast paced run that holds your attention to the very last shot. Filmed in Belgrade and Montenegro, the city provides the twisting maze for hunt and chase action film.
4 stars out of 5
