Kandahar (released 5/26/23)

I don’t think I’ve seen a more soulless action movie in my life. The main character’s motivations are generic and thin. The film has moments where you are supposed to be sad a character died but it does nothing to you emotionally. The whole thing is a bland mess of a “we are in the Middle East, let’s try to get to a plane out of here with bad guys chasing us”. I didn’t genuinely care about the characters because every “character development” scene was boring and generic. I haven’t felt so blah about a movie since Morbius. There are a couple of cool scenes, particularly with the use of a night vision gunfight. I don’t really think I can recommend this movie unless you are a sucker for Gerard Butler action movies. This felt more like filling an action movie quota than a well-thought-out movie.

Story - 10%

Characters - 14%

Pacing - 15%

Spectacle - 17%

Entertainment - 13%

Total score: 69%

Grade scale:

90%-100% = must watch

80%-89% = solid, but could be better

70%-79% = Not terrible, watch if the characters or story interests you

60%-69% = only watch for completionist reasons

0%-59% = just skip it, I find the positives and they don't exist here