By Connie Lee - October 23, 2024
Anyone who's familiar with Roel Reiné's filmography knows that he is no stranger to intense, action-packed projects. Following his directorial work on Paramount+'s Halo and Netflix' Fistful Classified is the director's latest project, and while it has Reiné's signature style and flair and attempts to solidify itself with a good mix of muscle and substance, Classified falls short of leaving an impact beyond the first watch. And if you're like me, it may not be enough to satisfy your action-thriller itch entirely.
Classified stars Aaron Eckhart as Evan Shaw, a hardened CIA hitman who finds out from a mystery woman (Abigail Breslin), who supposedly works for MI6, that his boss has actually been dead for years. Wanting to know who he has been taking orders from, he ventures out on his most crucial life-or-death mission.
Right off the bat, it's clear that Classified's story has the potential to stand out, but it's the execution that holds it back. For the first hour, it seems like the film is going through an identity crisis – everything from the flow to the character development and motivations feels unclear and underdeveloped. It's trying hard to be suspenseful and a legitimate action thriller, but all the pieces aren't glued together well enough, and may not persuade some to stay with Shaw's journey to the end.
The second half is where it shines, primarily because it overshadows and sacrifices everything the first half tried to build up. At this point, it's about humanity rather than just a covert thriller, and it absolutely works better this way: The stakes are higher, there's more emotional value, and there's better cohesion between the use of space, direction, and overall filmography, and the main drivers of the story. Basically, it gains enough juice to keep the audience invested despite being very predictable and formulaic. But, with this, I'd much rather take predictable than something that completely fizzles out.
Where there's a lack of substance in an action film, it should be made up with some decent fight sequences or back-and-forth, clever quips. Unfortunately, there's not much of either to amp up Classified up. To compensate for the lack of both, there's a plethora of shooting and loud explosions and heated exchanges (which do add needed excitement at the right moments), but they just don't feel as fun as well-choreographed hand-to-hand combat or fleshed-out dialogue would have.
Eckhart and Breslin surprisingly make a fun pair to watch, their talents making the best of the material they're given. His stoic strength blends well with her charisma and sharpness, reeling the plot back in and adding energy and confidence in many parts that would've otherwise felt too unsure and hokey. And while he hardly had any screen time, Tim Roth, who plays Kevin Angler, manages to steal every scene he's in with effortless wit and humour. It's a shame that Roth was so underutilized because if he had a more significant presence alongside Eckhart and Breslin, we'd easily be discussing a 3.5-star review or possibly even higher.
Classified may be average, but like Reiné's other films, Hard Target 2 and Death Race 3: Inferno, it still makes for a good enough Saturday night popcorn flick. It's hard not to compare it to other franchises with smarter and tighter fight scenes and narratives like Mission Impossible and Bourne, but it's meaty enough to keep watchers somewhat interested—and seeing who gets their comeuppance at the end is at least worth staying for.
CLASSIFIED IS AVAILABLE ON DIGITAL PLATFORMS OCTOBER 28
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