Changing of the Guard

Based on the comic of the same name, "The Old Guard" doesn't break any new ground, but it may temporarily satiate audiences currently craving big-budget summer tentpoles

The most interesting factoid that should be championed is unrelated to the plot and its actors; it's the film's historical significance. Director Gina Prince-Bythewood is the first Black woman to direct a comic-based major motion picture. It may seem trivial, but considering it hasn't been done and the two characters with the most focus are women (one of whom is Black), her contributions shouldn't be underplayed. Known for romantic and dramatic fare like "Beyond the Lights","Love and Basketball" and "The Secret Life of Bees", she proves herself to be a fairly competent first-time action director. While none of the gunplay or hand-to-hand combat is remarkable, there is a touch of style and the choreography is mostly easy to follow.

Charlize Theron stars as Andi, a war-worn immortal who leads a group of others like her as they dash around the globe searching out good deeds. A former CIA operative named Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor) recruits them for their latest job, but twists are ahead for both parties when a new immortal named Nile (KiKi Layne) is discovered. The main cast is rounded out by Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, Harry Melling and Matthias Schoenaerts. Written by Greg Rucka (who also co-created the comic), "The Old Guard" is flanked with trusted tropes and while that often translates to cliched storytelling, it does feature some splendid bits of character work to keep things on track.

Movies like "The Old Guard" speak to the importance of Netflix in the current cinematic landscape. A project like this, based on a relatively obscure comic property with only two A-list stars and a mid-sized budget (estimated around $70 million dollars), could have been one that was easily overlooked at the box office. The pandemic notwithstanding, had this originally been slated for a theatrical release, it may have been competing against films like "Ghostbusters: Afterlife", "The Forever Purge" and "Tenet". Instead, its presence on the streaming giant's platform allowed it to be beamed straight into homes, tablets and phones on a post-holiday weekend relatively unchallenged. At a point where viewers may be starved for summer blockbusters, it adequately fills the void. It never reaches its full potential, but it's suitable popcorn entertainment. While it does become inevitably predictable, it's still a worthwhile action-fantasy vehicle. B