'Gunpowder Milkshake' Review
R: Strong bloody violence throughout and language
Runtime: 1 Hr and 54 Minutes
Production Companies: StudioCanal, The Picture Company
Distributor: Netflix
Director: Navot Papushado
Writers: Navot Papushado, Ehud Lavski
Cast: Karen Gillan, Lena Headey, Carla Gugino, Chloe Coleman, Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett, Paul Giamatti
Release Date: July 14, 2021
Netflix
Sam (Karen Gillan) was only 12 years old when her mother Scarlet (Lena Headey), an elite assassin, was forced to abandon her. Sam was raised by The Firm, the ruthless crime syndicate her mother worked for. Now, 15 years later, Sam has followed in her mother’s footsteps and grown into a fierce hit-woman. She uses her “talents” to clean up The Firm’s most dangerous messes. She’s as efficient as she is loyal. But when a high-risk job goes wrong, Sam must choose between serving The Firm and protecting the life of an innocent 8-year-old girl — Emily (Chloe Coleman). With a target on her back, Sam has only one chance to survive: Reunite with her mother and her lethal associates, The Librarians (Michelle Yeoh, Angela Bassett, and Carla Gugino). These three generations of women must now learn to trust each other, stand up to The Firm and their army of henchmen, and raise hell against those who could take everything from them.
Gunpowder Milkshake shines best through its production design and art direction. For a high-octane shoot 'em up action flick, it has such an infectious visual style with a vibrant palette to make its world have its own identity. Its 1950s aesthetic, whether it be the diner where Sam does her “business” transactions or the massively scaled library, helps this feel like its own assassin's world with color and retro energy.
It’s fairly simple to turn your brain off and have fun with the film, for it has campy b-movie type energy where it doesn’t take itself too seriously and is gleefully bloody violent. By the time the third act commences and you see Michelle Yeoh, Lena Headey, Angela Bassett, and Carla Gugino go ham on fellow assassins in an excellently choreographed action sequence, you’re in or you’re out. That being said, it’s an uphill battle to get there.
It’s common for action movies to be “style over substance” and while Gunpowder Milkshake is one of those flicks, the style itself is too distracting to be completely immersed in. Navot Papushado’s direction — while ambitious to deliver off-the-wall, fast-paced action — lessens the effect and fluidity of various set pieces due to execution, whether it’s via shot composition or slow-motion movements. Despite featuring some great fatalities that would make the new Mortal Kombat movie quiver, the shot composition is very scattershot during several action set pieces, which lessens the potential and effect of the overall scene itself. At times you completely lose the geography of the scene, for Papushado emphasizes either closeups or shifting pans. And when he’s not doing that, he's using slow motion to depict the over-the-top chaos, but it’s done so often that it disrupts the pacing.
The narrative itself has been done many times: A rogue assassin must pay for their sins by taking care of a lonely child after they killed their dad. While the film nears a two-hour runtime, a ton of the story beats are underdeveloped, if not completely rushed. The budding relationship between Sam and the 8-year-old Emily is pushed to the wayside as Sam tries to reconcile with her estranged mom while trying to avoid the goons from the agency she works for. While it’s only campy in terms of violence, every other aspect is taken far too seriously.
Karen Gillan is a very talented actress who has shined in many roles for decades. She has done wonderful things and as far as many are concerned, she’s a major badass but unfortunately, she is completely miscast and pretty bad in this film. Sam is supposed to be a stealthy, cold assassin with little room for emotion but Gillan’s reactions and line deliveries are too hammy, for she tries way too hard to be sullen. Every time she’s supposed to be intimidating to her enemies, she pulls a smolder rather than striking fear. Her delivery never feels natural, especially when she’s around her co-stars. After The Librarians appear, which is far too deep into the film’s runtime, you wish you could’ve hung out with them over Gillan and Headey. Michelle Yeoh, the fucking badass that she is, gets all the best kills and takes multiple MVP highlights in the film.
Gunpowder Milkshake is a mindless action movie that emphasizes colorful over-the-top violence to compensate for the lack of thrills or story. It’s easy to appreciate on a visual level but when it comes to technical and performance aspects, it leaves so much to be desired.
