WILDCAT
(director: James Nunn; screenwriter: Dominic Burns; cinematographer: Maja Zamojda; editor: Ben Mills; music: Si Begg; cast: Kate Beckinsale (Ada), Lewis Tan (Roman), Bailey Patrick (Curtis), Rasmus Hardiker (Edward), Charles Dance (Frasier Mahoney), Alice Krige (Mrs. Christina Vine), Mathilde Warnier (Cia), Roxy Striar (Jody, Cia’s assistant), Isabelle Moxley (Charlotte), Ed Kingsley (Findlay), Tom Bennett (Galloway); Runtime: 99; MPAA Rating: R; producers: James Harris, Dominic Burns, Mark Lane, Christian Mercuri, Roman Viaris-de-Lesegno; Aura Entertainment/Capstone Pictures/ VOD; 2025-UK)
“The story is contrived and convoluted.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
Brit director James Nunn (“One Shot”/”Hungry”) and writer Dominic Burns create an action pic with many shoot-outs, twists and explosions. It’s a Guy Ritchie type of noisy Cockney crime drama that’s set in an East London location where organized crime gangs flourish.
The two long-standing neighborhood gangs are led by Christina Vine (Alice Krige) and her rival Frasier Mahoney (Charles Dance). But There’s a new upstart organized street gang, Mushka, an Eastern European outfit that wear skull masks and threaten the area with its ambitions and psychotic behavior.
The tough cookie Ada (Kate Beckinsale) is a former black ops operator who returns to action after years away to save her hearing-impaired eight-year-old daughter Charlotte (Isabelle Moxley), who has been kidnapped by Mahoney’s gang. In the prologue she acts to free her daughter by robbing a jewelry store with her former Special Forces pals, her at one time lover Roman (Lewis Tan) and the dependable muscle-guy Curtis (Bailey Patrick). Also, in on the robbery is her inept younger screw-up brother Edward (Rasmus Hardiker). They rob the jewelry store of Mrs. Vine to pay off Mahoney the debt of 500,000 pounds Edward owes him after stealing from the gang. The hope is by paying her brother’s debt, the gang will release Charlotte.
Ada uses her former contact Cia (Mathilde Warnier), now running a sex club, as a fence to sell the stolen diamonds. But things become chaotic when a gang war between the rival gangs starts, as it’s Ada’s hope this will keep the heat off her doing the heist.
The action scenes are sharply done but by rote, while the story is contrived and convoluted. It’s a disposable film that nevertheless will probably have a long life with viewers on cable who find such mindless action films entertaining if technically competent despite their low-quality.
REVIEWED ON 1/4/2026 GRADE: C+
dennisschwartzreviews.com