‘Argylle’ is a Spoofy Spy Film Lacking Substance

Slo-mo shots, explosions and a scene featuring pop star Dua Lipa, Matthew Vaughn’s “Argylle” contains all the elements an espionage film should have — with the exception of a coherent plot.  

The film suffers from constantly trying to prove itself as a campy reimagining of the spy genre. Every scene is met with painfully unserious dialogue and cartoonishly archetypal characters. The only thing it proves is its ability to profit off tropes and pop culture trends, resulting in a soulless movie severely lacking narrative direction. 

Bryce Dallas Howard plays Elly Conway, a famous novelist best known for her series on a fictional spy named Agent Argylle. As Elly struggles to write the final chapter of her series, a real life agent of espionage named Aidan, played by Sam Rockwell saves her from an attempted assassination. 

He reveals every cliché she’s written about is true — that an evil spy organization called Division does exist and is plotting to rule the world with plans to capture her. 

Howard (“Jurassic World,” “Black Mirror”) and Rockwell’s (“Jojo Rabbit,” “The Green Mile”) witty banter evidences the duo’s chemistry as they try to defeat the head of Division, Ritter, played by Bryan Cranston.

Utilizing quippy remarks and a scowling expression, Cranston (“Breaking Bad,” “Malcolm in the Middle” ) effectively portrays Ritter as comically menacing as he chastises his goons for their failure to capture Elly. 

The first half of the movie plays out as expected — the protagonists evade Ritter while thwarting his evil plan. However, the film’s halfway mark starts a domino effect of jarring warps in the plot which seemingly exist for the sake of shock value alone. With the amount of twists ensuing after this point, it felt like the producers were trying to hit a plot twist quota.

Narrative structure falters throughout the remainder of the film, pointing to a lack of intentionality.

Excessive eye-straining CGI inserted into virtually every scene hinders the film’s immersion. Not only was the CGI poorly executed — at some points it was glaringly obvious a green screen was used — but it was utterly unnecessary, the best example of this being Elly’s cat Alfie, who is entirely CGI. 

The film’s saving grace is its captivating action and fight scenes. This comes as no surprise since director Matthew Vaughn (“Kingsman,” “Kick-Ass”) has built a reputation around crafting exciting, innovative action sequences. 

With a lackluster plot, the film’s over-reliance on fight scenes reveals itself later on — each becoming less grounded in reality as the film progresses. Suspended disbelief can only go so far when characters start defying the laws of physics by iceskating on crude oil. 

The film begets criticism not because it’s a spoofy, light-hearted movie in a world where dark dramas saturate the media. Comedies in recent years such as “Booksmart” and “Barbie” show the genre can be critically successful. Rather, those films have what “Argylle” lacks — a clear identity. 

The film is an example of the formulaic filmmaking plaguing Hollywood, which operates under the assumption a star-studded cast, popular tropes and big-budget special effects will guarantee a blockbuster film. 

These components are prevalent in “Argylle,” and it’s apparent the film exists only to showcase these spectacles as opposed to crafting a film with a heart and soul. It’s a lazy attempt at conforming to a formula which strips films of innovative, creative visions. 

“Argylle” is in theaters now.

Featured image courtesy of Apple TV+