Paradox Effect movie storyline. In an Italian bar, former drug addict Karina (Olga Kurylenko) is forced to work an unpleasant job with an unpleasant boss. Her 11-year-old daughter is about to arrive, but the grieving mother won’t be able to meet the child at the airport. And all because the poor girl witnesses a murder. This event plunges the heroine into a dangerous criminal story, where her child’s life will be at stake.
Paradox Effect is a 2023 American action film written by Samuel Bartlett, Andrea Iervolino and Ferdinando Dell’Omo, directed by Scott Weintrob. It stars Harvey Keitel, Olga Kurylenko, Meredith Mickelson, Talia Asseraf, Enjy Kiwan, Oliver Trevena, Romano Reggiani, Andrea Garofalo, Stella Addario, Luke Cannella and Diego Guerra. The film premiered at the 2023 Rome Film Festival.
Film Review for Paradox Effecü
Olga Kurylenko continues to rapidly fill her far from shameful filmography with selective garbage, filmed somewhere in Europe, with a script written on a napkin and a budget of 6 bucks (or pounds or euros, it doesn’t matter). Last year, we were lamenting the fact that a British historical misunderstanding appeared on the screens of Ukrainian cinemas «Boudica», which was a mockery of the viewer. Just in May, the action movie Chief of Station, which has been passed over for our distribution, and this is probably for the best. And now it’s time for the equally miserable «Paradox Effect».
It’s worth noting that this is the second week in a row that an action-thriller with a female protagonist has been released. Last weekend, we had the opportunity to enjoy a pointless bore called «Trigger Warning», which premiered on Netflix. «Paradox Effect» — a movie based on the same opera, i.e., just as unpretentious, absurd, and painfully boring. Only here Olga Kurylenko deals with useless extras instead of Jessica Alba.
From the very beginning, the filmmakers try to assure the viewer that the main characters will have to deal with a cruel and very tough Italian mafia. This «intimidation» happens primarily due to the presence of veteran Harvey Keitel, who has forgotten what he has forgotten in this realm of tastelessness. Of course, the best days of the 85-year-old actor, who has worked with Rodriguez, Tarantino, Scorsese, Ridley Scott, and others over the years, are far behind him, but even here he adds at least some credibility to the character.
This alone does not save the overall picture, where the villainous ambitions are limited to the fact that a crazy old man has kidnapped children and is demanding a ransom. Gathering around him a cripple and a half with machine guns and holed up in some abandoned building. Even Keitel’s handsome Jonquil suit, spectacular cigar, and pseudo-philosophical monologues do not provide this small-town gang with the necessary mafia presentability.
«Paradox Effect» Could have been a great comedy, but, first of all, there is no desire to laugh at old Harvey Keitel, and it is absolutely wrong. Secondly, the creators make such a serious expression on their faces as if they were reenacting a Shakespearean tragedy. The tense situation is relieved only by the tireless radio host, and he seems to be the only person in the world who is really interested in how this whole mess will end.
There are some interesting moments in the movie, but they have to do with the filming itself, in particular, with the obvious use of a drone, when the camera literally jumps out of the apartment window into the yard and follows the car. We can also recall a scene in which the protagonist’s daughter is caught between two shooters, just as John Connor once found himself in a tight corridor between two hellions of the Skynet.
Even the official poster of the film shamelessly lies to us and promises more than the movie actually offers. Olga Kurylenko will not be wearing a costume a la Kate Beckinsale in «Underworld», and you can’t even dream of such a luxury as a helicopter, even in the background. At most, you can count on a couple of broken down cars, which, for example, in the world of Dominic Toretto will be considered a disgrace.
What is left in the end? A primitive budget action movie from somewhere in his late filmography Bruce Willis. A collection of grieving faces from any dentistry in your city. And another «virgin against trouble» in a movie that is a complete disaster. This is the very effect of paradox.
Paradox Effect (2024)
Directed by: Scott Weintrob
Starring: Harvey Keitel, Olga Kurylenko, Meredith Mickelson, Talia Asseraf, Enjy Kiwan, Oliver Trevena, Romano Reggiani, Andrea Garofalo, Stella Addario, Luke Cannella, Diego Guerra
Screenplay by: Samuel Bartlett, Andrea Iervolino, Ferdinando Dell’Omo
Production Design by: Simone Albano
Cinematography by: Dario Di Mella, photography
Tobia Sempi
Film Editing by: Marco Perez
Set Decoration by: Adriano Nacci
Art Direction by: Flaminia Ciabatti
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Splendid Film (Germany)
Release Date: May 31, 2024
