Atomic Blonde
2017 · Directed by David Leitch
Original language: English
- action
- thriller
The story
An undercover MI6 agent is sent to Berlin during the Cold War to investigate the murder of a fellow agent and recover a missing list of double agents.
What it’s like
Neon-soaked Berlin nights, fluorescent-lit safehouses, and a palette of teal, magenta and cold concrete grey give this film a glossy, hyper-stylised surface, with the 1989 city in its last months of division rendered as a maze of wet streets, dim bars and grim interrogation rooms. Director David Leitch favours long, unbroken takes that follow a single fight across stairwells and apartment corridors, with the camera rolling alongside the action, and the sound design leans on hard impacts, breath, and a jukebox-style soundtrack of 80s new wave and synth pop that cuts against the grime. The mood is cool, sardonic and knowing, a kind of stylish paranoia that suits a late-night watch with a drink in hand. Pacing is brisk and propulsive, with quieter, slower stretches of interrogation and cigarette-smoke conversation between the bursts of movement. Violence is frequent and brutal, with bone-crunching hand-to-hand combat, shootings and grim torture scenes, plus some nudity and sex that is frank rather than tender. It follows a hardened, guarded spy who trusts almost no one, and the emotional arc is about the slow, costly breaking of that armour. It is for viewers who enjoy polished, adrenaline-driven espionage and don't mind a hard edge.
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