The Gray Man Review: How was the Russo Brothers’ foray into action after the MCU?

The Gray Man, based on Mark Greaney’s 2009 spy thriller novel, is Netflix’s latest attempt at creating a blockbuster action movie.

Director Anthony and Joe Russo reunite with some of their Marvel Cinematic Universe collaborators for The Gray Man, including writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, as well as Captain America star Chris Evans.

Having closed out Phase 3 of the MCU with Avengers: Endgame, the Russo Brothers assembled a star-studded cast for their upcoming movie.

In addition to Evans, The Gray Man features Ryan Gosling, Ana de Armas, Regé-Jean Page, Billy Bob Thornton, and Dhanush.

In addition to exciting fight scenes and wonderfully cheesy dialog, The Gray Man offers a wickedly fun villain and a throwback to action movies of the 1980s and 1990s.

In The Gray Man, Gosling plays Sierra Six, a member of a covert CIA team made up of former criminals recruited by Donald Fitzroy (Thornton) to carry out off-the-books assassinations.

Six is enlisted by the CIA’s Denny Carmichael (Page) to eliminate a target, but the operation turns out to be more complicated than anticipated.

Six goes on the run, leaving Carmichael to contact psychopathic mercenary Lloyd Hansen (Evans). To survive Hansen’s killers, including the formidable Avik San (Dhanush), Six calls in favors from old friends like Margaret Cahill (Alfre Woodard) and Dani Miranda (De Armas).

Even though Six is one of CIA’s best, it is unclear whether he will survive this situation and save Claire’s life (Julia Butters).

Although Markus and McFeely adapted The Gray Man, it is somewhat convoluted and doesn’t carry much weight on issues surrounding the CIA’s Sierra program.

Instead, the movie focuses on action set pieces and character development—particularly with Gosling, playing Six, and Evans, portraying Lloyd. 

There are some cheesy quips in the script, including, but not limited to, a comment about Gosling looking like a Ken doll and an order to “make him dead.”

But Evans delivers them all with just the right amount of panache as the sociopathic villain. Gosling’s Six balances out Lloyd’s outrageous personality with a more stoic and glib action hero, but he remains equally entertaining. The most exhilarating scenes in The Gray Man are when Gosling and Evans go toe-to-toe—whether with gibes or fists.

Evans and Gosling are cast by the Russos who knew exactly what they were doing, and the actors deliver performances that feel intentionally tongue-in-cheek rather than overly grim. Thus, The Gray Man has a stellar supporting cast that helps deliver the excitement and makes the film very engaging.

The supporting cast does not have nearly as much to work with, but they all manage to do well with what they have. Dani is brought to life by De Armas, working alongside Gosling’s Six, and she shows what action chops she’s got after being underused in No Time to Die.

Thornton, Woodard, and Butters play competent supporting roles, but don’t necessarily outshine the stars. Dhanush, on the other hand, stands out in The Gray Man.

Though he has a small role, his character is vicious and intimidating. Dhanush’s action scenes are some of the best in the movie because of his screen presence.

Despite that, Page as Denny and Jessica Henwick as Suzanne fail to strike the right tone for the movie, and their own silly dialog doesn’t help.

As a whole, The Gray Man is a riveting summer popcorn movie that’s elevated by the charismatic performances of Gosling and Evans.

In terms of Netflix releases, this film is similar to 6 Underground and Red Notice—both of which star Ryan Reynolds—in that it’s a globetrotting action-adventure film with an emphasis on espionage. Additionally, The Gray Man plays to Gosling and Evans’ different strengths in terms of comedy.

The Gray Man stands out from Netflix’s past action movies, offering more exciting fight sequences, more uproarious humor, and an overall more entertaining movie experience.

About The Gray Man

The Gray Man is an  American action thriller film directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, who both produced the film with Mike Larocca, from a screenplay co-written with Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, based on the 2009 novel of the same name by Mark Greaney.

The film follows the story of one CIA agent Court Gentry (Ryan Gosling) who uncovers his organization’s dirty secrets and now is on the run to escape from the hands of his former colleague Lloyd Hansen (Chris Evans).

Produced by the brothers’ company, AGBO, the film is set to commence a newly developed franchise based on the novel and stars Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans in the lead roles, marking the fifth time the brothers’ collaboration with Evans following the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The movie will also star Indian filmstar Dhanush.

Source: Netflix