It’s uncommon to purchase a film without prior knowledge and find yourself genuinely pleased with the result. As a longtime admirer of Jessica Chastain's work, seeing her in a new project prompted me to give it a try. The low price on VUDU made it an easy decision, and I’m happy I took the chance. **Storyline: 4/5**. Jessica Chastain portrays Ava, an assassin employed by a secretive organization that doesn't appreciate her habit of conversing with her targets. When she begins to question her actions, she returns home to her family and becomes embroiled in a fight for survival. **Characters: 4/5**. While Ava is the central figure, we’re introduced to her mother, sister, ex-boyfriend, and handler throughout the film. Each character has their own issues with Ava; however, Duke, her handler and trainer, seems closest to her. Her mother's presence feels largely intended for providing background information about Ava's past. The sister, Judy, is more involved in the narrative and could be considered the most developed secondary character. The ex-boyfriend, Michael, follows closely behind. While deep connections between characters are absent, they all effectively contribute to advancing the plot. **Direction: 4/5**. I wasn’t familiar with Tate Taylor's work before this, though I know he has directed films that didn’t appeal to me. This is my first experience with his directing style. Overall, he isn't a bad director; he demonstrates a good sense of how a movie should be filmed and avoids excessive camera movements during action sequences. I was satisfied with his approach. **Casting: 5/5**. A strong cast can elevate any film, and this one delivers. Jessica Chastain, Geena Davis, Common, Colin Farrell, and John Malkovich consistently provide quality performances in their respective roles. **Acting: 5/5**. For me, a truly great movie is when you forget you’re watching actors portraying characters. While there were occasional moments where this didn't occur, it was rare. Most of the time, I felt that everyone convincingly embodied their roles. **Music: 4/5**. The soundtrack isn't something I would necessarily purchase, but it effectively blended into the background without being distracting, adding a little extra impact to certain scenes. **Cinematography: 5/5**. A frequent annoyance in recent action films is the overuse of shaky-cam to simulate excitement. Thankfully, this film avoided that technique. The scenes were well shot and the lighting was consistently excellent. **Production Design: 5/5**. It appeared that few sets were constructed, which likely helped given the movie’s probably limited budget. The existing locations were utilized effectively and contributed to bringing the story together. **Pacing: 5/5**. This film didn't feel as slow-paced as I anticipated. While it did move at a deliberate pace, it never felt like an eternity until the end. Scenes seemed to be the ideal length for maintaining momentum without feeling rushed or drawn out. **Enjoyment: 5/5**. My personal enjoyment of a movie is one of my most important criteria. I thoroughly enjoyed this film; it was a well-executed spy-assassin thriller with a modest budget, which meant the story had to carry the weight. I considered whether my rating should be 4/5 or 5/5, and that could change in the future, but right now, I really did enjoy it.

Source on TMDB