Project Power

I really burned myself with this movie choice on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. The preview intrigued me, but in the end, it’s a film that won’t be remembered even a week later. The initial concept caught my interest, but the problem with Project Power is simply the script. I haven’t seen such a straightforward and uninteresting affair in a long time; the film doesn’t attempt to shock in any way and plays it safe, which bothered me a lot. One of the few positives is the cast; Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Jamie Foxx perform at a decent level, though it's nothing groundbreaking (don’t expect Oscar ambitions :D), but they did deliver above standard performances. The main protagonist, however, was a poor fit for the entire concept; her chemistry with the duo didn’t work at all, making it a significant drawback. The action could have salvaged it, it really could have (and there are a few hints of it), but it played such a minor role that it was disappointing. It’s a shame. The special effects were decent, but they didn’t blow me away (for $85 million, the technical aspects are a joke; I’d expect a much lower budget). The music also didn’t improve the overall impression. All in all, it’s the kind of film where the potential was entirely wasted. I give it 50%. (08/18/2020)

Project Power is sort of alternative, black version of Push (has it been 11 years already?), with a lot of rapping and talk about oppression. It moves along quite well, but you soon forget the generic storyline, even though the original idea and the world where it all takes place are interesting. Thanks to the great cast and the setting in New Orleans, Project Power is a really good watch. The action scenes are very convincing, but contain nothing new. All said, this is a good TV flick. (08/14/2020)

If there was something done right by Netflix here it was its choice of actors. I quite missed Jamie Foxx and Joseph Gordon-Levitt and even though Project Power is quite dumb I was able to watch it because of them. Moreover the action scenes weren’t boring at all. The premise was really stupid and I could imagine these actors in something a lot better. But I would probably have to wait for it... (08/17/2020)

I have sympathy for it because, with its empowerment message, it gets on the nerves of the herd of local brownish bastards. It has balls and an idea, but unfortunately they can't replace the naivety, the cumbersome start and the chaotic editing. Similarly to Extraction, there is no clear villain, and as in the case of every Netflix original, the playwright went on vacation and never returned. (08/17/2020)

Jamie Foxx and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are fine actors, but when they have nothing to play, it's tough. Project Power is yet another generic Netflix movie where all the racial quotas were dutifully observed and where at least one scene contained a completely direct critique of racist white behavior. I'm getting tired of it. I'm naturally accepting that racial issues are all the rage these days and that Netflix needs to go with the times. But that contemporary paradigm can't obscure the fact that, from a filmmaking standpoint, this film is subpar in every way, and the appeal to #blacklivesmatter here feels terribly empty. (08/17/2020)