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Dominique Fishback in Project Power

Project Power Eastwood, and is promptly mocked. He doesn’t really fit the tough rogue cop Superpowers are a drug in this fun, incisive action flick mold; he’s not physically intimidating enough to be scary nor ruthless enough

If you could take a pill and have Brutal, funny, and a pretty enternot above cutting corners to get what he incredible powers for five minutes, taining ride, Project Power is a mashwants. He goes to great lengths to make would you do it? up of the mythology of superhero orisure Robin is all right as their tumultu

That’s the sales pitch given to drug gin stories and the cynicism of The ous night turns into a bloodbath. dealers in New Orleans as a pharmaBoys. The film answers pretty quickly The heart of the film is Fishback’s ceutical company offers them pills to what people would do with super powwonderful performance as Robin. sell on the streets. They’re skeptical ers: commit crimes or act in ways that She’s a smart, capable girl with big at first, but it turns out the pills work. selfishly benefit themselves. No one is dreams and no means. She wants to Anyone who ingests a pill is immedipopping a power pill to save a kitten be a rapper, but is relegated to drug ately imbued with a random power. from a tree—they’re robbing banks dealing so she can keep her family

The key word is random. Some peoand trying to incinerate their enemies. afloat financially while her mother’s ple have super strength, some are Though the film and directors Henry health suffers. Fishback shows Robbulletproof, some get fire powers, and Joost and Ariel Schulman (Nerve) in’s vulnerability without ever letting some … just explode. Even with the have a rather bleak view of humaniher be cowed by the scary situations risk of immediate death, the pills ty, Project Power is strongest when it around her. Robin is tougher than she are a hit, with criminals and police examines the softer moments between looks and possibly the only truly altrualike using them to enhance their characters. The relationship between istic person in the film. The one person lives. After six weeks, New Orleans is Robin, Art, and Frank is surprisingly focused on doing the right thing is also flooded with reports of disappearing heartfelt for such a cynical movie. the one person who never takes the people and thieves lifting cars over Both men see vulnerability in Robin power pill. their heads. and instead of exploiting it as others While the film has a fun concept

The government doesn’t seem too interested in investigating the incidents, but someone is hunting down the dealers and killing them. Cop The heart of the film is Dominique Fishback’s wonderful performance as Robin. She’s a smart, Frank (Joseph Gordon-Levitt: 7500), who uses the power pills to fearlesscapable girl with big dreams and no means. ly charge into dangerous situations, to be feared. He’s a decent guy who’s begins to wonder why his precinct have done, seek to help her. These and interesting performances, Project seems to bury all reports of super relationships are the heart of the film Power could have done with a bit of a powers. and what makes Project Power more script polish. The motivations of the

Also asking questions is Art (Jamie interesting than run-of-the-mill comic villains, and the villains in general Foxx: Just Mercy), a man on a mission book movies. are sketchy. They are bad because the to find the source of the pills, as the Making the film work is a trio of good movie needs them to be. Unlike the company behind them is holding his performances from Foxx, Gordon-LevJohn Wick franchise, Project Power daughter hostage. He doesn’t mind itt, and Fishback. Foxx is great as doesn’t bother with world building. killing a few people to get answers if the quintessential tough-guy, killing If you’ve exhausted Netflix options he must. His quest runs him afoul of people gleefully while doggedly peruslike The Old Guard and miss Marvel Frank, most of the New Orleans police ing his goal. His Art is a broken man, and DC summer movies, Project Power department, and all the pill-pushers. haunted by his lost child and hoping is a fun, snappy summer blockbuster.

When Art meets Robin (Dominique to make things right. He sees in Robin The gore makes this movie geared Fishback: The Deuce), a young dealer another chance to save a young girl, more to adults but it should be fun who sells pills to finance her mother’s an opportunity he can’t pass up. to watch with older kids and could medical bills, he hesitates to kill her, As Frank, Gordon-Levitt offers a fun inspire a lively conversation after the telling her that if she helps him locate take on the cop who plays by his own movie about what powers you think the source of the pills, she will be rules. Throughout the film, Frank conyou’d inherit. spared. But can he be trusted? tinuously compares himself to Clint Fair Action * R * 113 mins.  p

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