Displaying items by tag: David Mackenzie

FUZE

UK, 2025, 98 minutes, Colour.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Theo James, Sam Worthington, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Saffron Hocking.

Directed by David Mackenzie.

A British action thriller with some surprises.

The title refers to a bomb crisis in central London, a World War II bomb discovered on a building site, calling in the experts, the detailed study of the bomb and the ability to defuse it, military personnel, and also London police involved in evacuating the area and keeping the situation under control.

This scene to indicate that Fuse is a fairly straightforward action thriller with Aaron Taylor-Johnson as the expert for defusing the bomb and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as the police superintendent.

But, there is more, much more.

While the bomb diffusing is going on, the audience sees a group of bank robbers entering a precinct, heavy equipment, drilling through a wall, getting into the room with safe deposit boxes, a search for uncut diamonds. Theo James is one of the gang, keeping an eye out for the police and the situation with the bomb defusing. Sam Worthington is a member of the gang.

Gradually, a young corporal working on the defusing and suspicious raises questions. Police searching the area for evacuations come across the robbery.

With the explosion of the bomb, the attention of the drama goes to the criminals, their escape, issues of diamonds, contacts, setups and betrayals… There is also the involvement of a family who live in the building near the bank and are kept for the interrogation.

And, just when the issues of the diamonds and betrayals seem to be explained, there is a whole lot more in the film, twists and drama and explanations right up to the end - not what we might have been expecting.

1. The title and expectations? Bombs and explosions? Defusing?
2. The impact of the plot, the situation, the police, the expert, the evacuation of the area, the details of the defusing? And the introduction to the theme of robbing the bank? Audiences wondering about the connection?
3. The London setting, in the city London, the building area, the bomb, World War II? The police and their involvement, communications? The expert, at the shooting range, his background, Middle East, the stories, comrades dead? The squad, the various personalities, the young corporal and his expertise, working with the bomb, the equipment, the timing, on an off? The police and the equipment, supervising, the screen and indication of the bomb and its activity? Phones and Communications? Timing, split-second? Alerts, scares?
4. The situation in the city, the police, the range of people on the move, police barriers? The introduction to Romeo and his family, the plane to catch, anxiety, the language? Seen in the park? Eventually their wanting to return, their address in the suspicious building? Bringing them home, the lift out, carrying the grandfather and chair upstairs? Interrogations, language issues? The grandfather and his assistance in giving information?
5. The bank robbery and the insertion in the main theme, the personalities, the team, their cover, overalls, the drilling, explosions, personal interactions, opening up the boxes, the cash, the jewellery, the uncut diamonds? Karalis on guard, his being seen by the two police, decisions to be made, the escape, the sewers, the car, the different personalities? The escape, the rendezvous with Karalis, the sewer stench and its being used to help the escape, the police guard, getting through, the arrival of the rendezvous, the splitting, the issue of the uncut diamonds, Karalis going outside, his partner coming in, the shooting? The issue of the diamonds, smashing, the fakes? The buildup to the confrontation, cars and pursuits, the shooting?
6. Zuzana and her role, personality, taking command, assessing situations, communications? The news about the robbery? The evacuation over?
7. The issue of the corporal, the bomb, the timing, his realising that it was not a World War II bomb, trying to speak to the authorities, his interaction with Will Tranter, eventually Will Tranter meeting the superior officer, conversations, acceptance of the job done?
8. The twists, the explanations of the end, going back 10 years, Romeo situations in Afghanistan, Tranter and standing on the bomb, as his assistant, the vehicle, Karalis and his presence, the strategy of the attack, the shooting, defusing the mine? The involvement of each, the connections, Karalis and the revelation, the actual uncut diamonds, eluding the police at the airport, the group meeting in Istanbul – and the final commentary on what happened to each of them and the diamonds?

RELAY

US, 2024, 112 minutes, Colour.

Riz Ahmed, Lily James, Sam Worthington, Willa Fitzgerald, Jarad Abrahamson, Pun Bandhu, Elsa Davis, Victor Garber.

Directed by David Mackenzie.

For most of the time, this is one of those paranoid thrillers that were popular decades ago, industrial espionage, technological surveillance, threats, dangers, counter surveillance.

The setting is New York. The issue is a big company, food company, working on developments but finding debilitating side-effects in their products, concealing the documentation. And these situations which lead to conscientious whistleblowers, pursuit of the whistleblowers, the recovery of documents.

In this case, the whistleblower is Sarah Grant, played by Lily James, in hiding, with documents, menaced by the company’s agents, taken on by a mysterious personality, a broker (the original name for this film). He is played very effectively by Riz Ahmed, able to live a shadowy existence, master of disguise, unobtrusively infiltrating situations. And, significantly, his mode of communication with Sarah Grant as well as her pursuers, is via at tri-state communication system, Relay.

With Relay, messages are typed for the central exchange and then voiced to the recipient by the staff. This is a method used for hearing impaired people. It also offers an opportunity for voice disguise and identity anonymity.

The group of pursuers is led by Sam Worthington. (Interesting that this New York story is directed by Scottish David Mackenzie and the two leads are British and Sam Worthington, born in England, growing up in Australia.)

What brings some humanity to the film is a gradual revelation of the broker’s story, Muslim background, New York City, 9/11, work on Wall Street, business exposes and his becoming a freelancer broker. But, the way this is revealed is through his attending of AA meetings, bringing some more personal depth to his character.

And, as might be expected, there is a twist in the drama. For this reviewer, the twist was too much, throwing too much doubt on the “realism” credibility of all that we had seen previously. And, while weapons previously were verbal threats and challenges by Relay, the culmination brings us to guns and knives, desperate chases…

Some have relished the dynamism of the story and for most of the film this is quite strong Others have found the twist and its consequences too much.

1. The original title, The Broker, and the focus on –? The film title and the focus on the communication system, tri-state, for hearing impaired, for voice disguising? Its use throughout the film?
2. The New York settings, the city, apartment blocks, the streets, offices, Grand Central station, since in Poughkeepsie? The musical score?
3. The initial situation, setting the tone? Hoffman, the meeting with McVie, with Ash? Documents, payments, at the train station? The introduction to Ash?
4. The new situation, Sarah Grant, the company, third development and experimentation, concealing failures in research, whistleblower, needing protection? Her presence, her character, communication with Ash via Relay? Her speaking, “Go ahead”? The quibble about “all right”? Her isolation, needing protection, the documents?
5. The character of Ash, seeming loner, a lonely life, the importance of the AA meetings, the discussions with Wash? After the meetings? The later meetings and his revelation about himself, Muslim, in New York, 9/11, his drinking, Wall Street, his tasks, broker and cover-ups? The explanation of himself, his personality?
6. The dealings with Sarah, the relay calls, his watching her, his various disguises? Her vulnerability, alone, jogging?
7. The corporations group, their personalities, working together, pursuit, the van, the phone calls through Relay?
8. The details of the plans for the documents, Ash and his cupboard, using US Post, the details, forwarding, collecting them? The news about the missing pages, Sara apologising, her mistake? The plan to put them in the newspaper, the group watching, the false tracking, photos and the use of many cameras, identifying Ash?
9. The plans for the money, sent to California, to be forwarded to Poughkeepsie? The plan is to save Sarah? Her being taken by the group, the Schubert concerto, Ash pulling the alarm, the escape?
10. The twist in the plot, credible or not? Undermining the realism of everything that had gone before, especially Sarah’s character and performance? The extreme detail in presenting the pursuit and finding the truth about it?
11. The shift from menace, paranoia, phones and cameras, Relay? The van, the tasers, guns, capitation his escape, the running, wounded? His previous phone call to Wash, the police arriving, the arrests?
12. The credibility of Sarah, the situation, the reality, her harsh toughness after the seeming romance?
13. Audience interest in this kind of thriller, espionage, psychology – but how much affected by the final twist and the ending?