Nikita star Maggie Q is back in action, alongside Michael Keaton and Samuel L. Jackson, in hew new action-thriller The Protege.
Rescued as a child by the legendary assassin Moody (Samuel L. Jackson), Anna (Maggie Q) is the world’s most skilled contract killer. However, when Moody is brutally killed, she vows revenge for the man who taught her everything she knows. As Anna becomes entangled with an enigmatic killer, their confrontation turns deadly, and the loose ends of a life spent killing weave themselves ever tighter.
There’s very little in The Protege that we haven’t seen before in one way or another, but the script recombines those familiar elements in a very entertaining way, and the likes of Jackson and Keaton help to bring the story alive. Now, Maggie Q is no stranger to action roles (from Mission Impossible 3 to The CW’s Nikita TV series, in which she was the star of the show), but Hollywood has failed to capitalize on her talents and with The Protege, it serves as a great reminder of how much fun she is to watch.
Q makes everything that’s asked of her look insanely easy – whether it’s diving for cover as people are shooting at her or jumping off a third-story balcony and riding a fire hose all the way to the ground. Not a lot of actors can pull this off, but Q does it with flying colors.
Director Martin Campbell does an excellent job at creating an atmosphere where audiences are surprised by the big plot twists rather than the character’s abilities, while Q can handle both physical and dramatic elements of the film. Campbell definitely knows his way around the camera to give a sense of geography (where both exits and bad guys are relative to Anna at any given moment) and fight-choreography (Q does pretty much all her own stunts in this film). The director’s style may seem a little old school – as the opening shot has a shadowy man’s foot stepping into a neon-reflecting puddle – but this isn’t a bad thing, in fact, it’s comforting when compared to other genre movies.
Overall, it’s so nice to see Maggie Q back in action, who just has a special gift of making everything look easy and director Campbell finds fresh angles on a familiar assassin story. Hopefully, The Protege will inspire others to recognize Q’s capabilities as a martial artist and an all-around action star.
The Protege is now playing exclusively in theaters.
What did you think of the film? Sound off in the comments.
