‘THE 355’: A WEIRD SPY THRILLER WITH A MOSTLY FEMALE CAST
Part of the title lineup you can find on Amazon, The 355 is one of those films that made a mostly quiet entrance. Let’s discover if this is unwarranted or not.
The 355 (2022) Film Review
Traveling and working as a spy is just a normal day for CIA operative Mason “Mace” Brown (Jessica Chastain). Along with her partner Nick (Sebastian Stan), the two are the best at this job. However on this op, things change when they explore the tension in their partnership. During their assignment, things go from golden to dark leading them to split up. Mace chances a mysterious woman who makes off with the drop, and later, during her debrief, she then learns Nick didn’t survive his pursuit.
With the weapon they were to secure still out in the open and with a mind for revenge, Mace sets out to secure the device. To do this, she must team with a German agent named Marie (Diane Kruger). A rebel and not exactly on the best terms with her agency, Marie has her own agenda, but together they find they may be able to do something good for everyone.
FILM REVIEW | ‘THE GRAY MAN’: THE RUSSO BROTHERS MAKE BLOCKBUSTER NETFLIX ACTION FLICK
💻🏍️🗡️‘THE 355’: A WEIRD SPY THRILLER WITH A MOSTLY FEMALE CAST. #JESSICACHASTAIN LEADS THE CAST. #MOVIES #THE355 #SPYTHRILLER #THRILLER #MOVIES #DIANEKRUGER #PENELOPECRUZ Share on XIn a nutshell, this is The 355. Given its plot, I find this hopes to be a kind of Bourne Identity (spy thriller). In some ways, it’s a cool idea, but sadly, this isn’t the movie to surpass that. The film relies a lot on subtitles, and while I know most like this, it’s way more distracting to me. As a result, everything in the set up doesn’t run smoothly.
I never fully find the answer of who has the weapon and the truth of each exchange or the why of it either. Because of this the film just isn’t all that good. The concept is entertaining, but it’s not well executed. However if you’re a fan of women led films, the writers do it right in giving them the last say. I’ve seen films championed as all about the women only to have a male character best them. So in that way, if that’s your thing, The 355 gets it right.
The cast also stacks up to be pretty impressive if you’re looking for that. There’s not only Chastain and Kruger (who you may remember from National Treasure) but also Lupita Nyong’o and Penélope Cruz, who gets to play the more comical team addition as the “nervous” and inexperienced spy. The film doesn’t skimp on its cast, this is for sure.
If you don’t mind subtitles and like spy films, you may find good in The 355. In the end, it’s one that’s not for me, but with a relatively high ranking in reviews on Amazon, likely this is an unpopular reaction. There’s plenty of action and things keep moving post that first adrenaline fueled foot chase.
Content: plenty of violence between hand-to-hand combat and gun use. There are also implications of poisoning, and someone is beaten by their boss. A bad guy uses people as leverage in front of someone they love (and murders them). There’s some profanity but mostly, it’s the violence that will bother viewers most. There’s also an implication that two people have sex (we see them lying in bed).
