'Atomic Blonde', 2017

Atomic Blonde wasn’t a huge hit by box office definitions, but it was one of my favorite movies of 2017. I’ll do my best to explain the basic plot, but I’ll admit it took me several watches to fully understand (there’s so many twists and turns!). The movie is based on the graphic novel ‘The Coldest City’ (by Antony Johnson and Sam Hart), and is set in gritty, divided Berlin in the midst of the Cold War. Lorraine Broughton (Charlize Theron) is a British spy, sent to Berlin to recover The List, a microfilm document that contains the names of every agent (on both sides) currently active in Berlin. Throughout the movie, she discovers that the former Stasi officer who previously had The List has memorized every name, and she agrees to escort him safely to West Berlin in exchange for those names. A lot of other twisty stuff happens, involving a fellow M16 agent named Percival (played by James McAvoy), the mysterious KGB double agent nickamed ‘Satchel’ who has plagued M16 for years, and a rookie French agent named Delphine (Sofia Boutella), with whom Broughton becomes romantically involved.

Some things I liked: This movie is not for the faint-hearted, in terms of its many violent action scenes. But Theron is an absolute badass, and you won’t get tired of watching her do almost all her own stunts. The neon-infused, early 90s vibe of punk Berlin makes for a very cool backdrop, and the soundtrack is full of 1980s hits (and some more contemporary covers) that also help to set the scene. Plus, it’s really cool to see an action movie that puts a woman at the forefront - and she has a relationship with another woman? I’m a fan.

Some things I didn’t like: This film very narrowly passes the Bechdel test (Lorraine and Delphine do have a conversation that’s not about a man), but I suppose I’m not really surprised, as it is an action movie at its core. While reading about the movie, I learned that the bisexual subplot was not a part of the original book, and was included by the writer Kurt Johnstad, who suggested it after Theron was wondering how to make it different from other spy movies. It’s kind of upsetting that this aspect of the plot would be used just to distinguish ‘Atomic Blonde’ from other spy movies (especially since the movie already seems distinguished for its strong female lead, and for other reasons), but I suppose it turned out alright since the end result is, well, a queer romance.

The five words I would use to describe this film: gritty, charged, steamy, violent, unpredictable

My queer take: If you like action movies (or even if you don’t, because they’re all about men and you haven’t seen one yet that you’ve liked), you should give ‘Atomic Blonde’ a try. The plot can be confusing at times (which agent is which? Who’s a double agent? Might there be - a triple agent??), but with a lead like Theron (and a steamy romance with Boutella), you won’t want to look away. Audiences gave the movie favorable reviews, while critics on Rotten Tomatoes scored it higher at 78% fresh. Theron confirmed in May of 2018 that there are plans for an Atomic Blonde 2, so watch the first one now while you can!

CW: Multiple scenes of physical violence, including murder(s), as well as shots of a bruised and beaten naked body.

Picture of the two actresses (Theron and Boutella) for queer clout!!

Fun fact: Towards the end of the movie, there is a seven minute fight scene in a staircase (between Broughton and two men) that appears to be a single take. The scene is actually multiple scenes cleverly stitched together (with techniques like pans and body-crossings) that took four days to film. You can watch more here.

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