SHADOW FORCE
(director/writer: Joe Carnahan; screenwriter: Leon Chills; cinematographer: Juanmi Azpiroz; editors: Kevin Hale, Mike Sale; music: Craig DeLeon; cast: Kerry Washington (Kyrah Owens), Omar Sy (Isaac Sarr), Mark Strong (Jack Cinder), Da’Vine Joy Randolph (Auntie), Cliff “Method Man” Smith (Unc), Jahleel Kamara (Ky Sarr), Yoson An (Vario), Sala Baker (Scath), Marvin Jones III (Cysgod), Natalia Reyes (Moriti), Jenel Stevens-Thompson (Anino), Marshall Cook (Patrick), Ed Quinn (Parker); Runtime: 104; MPAA Rating: R; producers: Kerry Washington, Pilar Savone, Stephen “Dr.” Love, Sterling K. Brown; Lionsgate; 2025)
“A low-brow, cliched, action pic.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
A low-brow, cliched, action pic directed and written without an edge by Joe Carnahan (“Narc”/”Boss Level”). Leon Chills is co-writer of this derivative film stealing material from the latest streaming action pics (though not itself a streaming pic).
It opens with a quote from the neuropsychologist and author Paul Persall: “Our most basic instinct is not for survival but for family.”
The story revolves around the once globetrotting elite assassins Kyrah (Kerry Washington) and Isaac (Omar Sy, French actor), an estranged Black couple who are in deep shit when they reunite and raise together their 5-year-old son Ky (Jahleel Kamara), after Isaac raised him as a single parent. It seems family life for the once star operatives, who quit an organization where no one is allowed to leave. Their actions piss off everyone in their former Shadow Force organization, including the ruthless big boss, an ambitious government social climber, the newly appointed Secretary General of G7, Kyrah’s ex-lover, the former CIA head Jack Cinder (Mark Strong). His secret group now tries to bring Kyrah and Isaac down after observing them on surveillance tape stop a bank robbery. The family must now flee for their safety to a hideout in the Colombian jungle. In their fight for survival, they’re aided by a comical pair of Shadow Force spies, Auntie (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) and Unc (Method Man).
This is a disposable B-pic, with limited entertainment value. The action sequences suck, its star Kerry Washington gives an unimpressive performance and has little chemistry with her miscast co-star Omar Sy, the dialogue is trite and the story-telling is uninspired.
On smaller home screens it might fare better than in theaters, as its major faults might not seem so bad when expectations are lowered.
REVIEWED ON 5/12/2025 GRADE: C
dennisschwartzreviews.com