Heart of Stone is essentially the same movie as Tom Cruise’s recent Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning — Part 1 and Priyanka Chopra’s Prime Video show Citadel only with a minor difference. It’s a lot more watchable than either of the two. But with the bar so low, that is hardly a compliment.
Gal Gadot, who is one of the film’s producers, plays Rachel Stone, a superspy with a beating heart working for a secret autonomous organisation called the Charter, the last line of defence in a notoriously power-hungry world that is incorrigibly addicted to violence. The Charter is on a mission to protect “The Heart”, the most formidable weapon to have existed. With access to trillions of data points at once, it can hack into anything, anywhere, we are told. In a bid to prevent it from landing into the wrong hands, Rachel takes us across the globe, starting from the Italian Alps to London, Lisbon, Senegal, and finally Iceland.
Gadot has a magnetic screen presence and ably shoulders most of the 114-minute film. Thanks to her Wonder Woman persona, she comfortably pulls off all the incredulous action sequences that would have felt too ludicrous with any other actor. It’s a delight to see her kick butt and trespass into strictly male territory with such charisma and chutzpah.
However, an indomitable lead can only do so much. It is Heart of Stone’s feeble screenplay that undoes it. Although I like the way writers Greg Rucka and Allison Schroeder show how fluid and malleable the notions of good and bad can be and how each of us is capable of both, all the characters are paper thin, and their motivations behind what they do, strained. The story is so dull that despite being a globe-trotting spy actioner with a decent twist that turns the plot on its head, the Netflix film doesn’t manage to create even a single moment of genuine thrill or magic.
Another major letdown is just how lacklustre the film’s antagonist is. Every hero is only as good as the villain. This is where Heart of Stone fails entirely. Marking her much-anticipated Hollywood debut, Alia Bhatt plays Keya Dhawan, a 22-year-old prodigal hacker from Pune, out to seek vendetta. I appreciate how unlike her contemporaries or those before her, she has resisted the temptation to play an uber-glamourous part. Instead, Keya’s appearance throughout the film is as barebones and no-nonsense as can be. But this silver lining aside, the film wastes Bhatt entirely. As it does Jamie Dornan.
I wish instead of obsessing over guns, bullets, and screens, Rucka’s story had focused on interpersonal relationships, especially between Rachel and Keya. It’s full of delicious possibilities. Gadot intends to spin Heart of Stone into a franchise. Should it happen, I hope they give Keya the stage and the spotlight to show the many tricks up her sleeve. Us Indians know she’s got plenty. It’s time for the world to see it too.
Should you, then, watch Heart of Stone? If your only other two options are Gadar 2 and OMG 2, you totally must. But there’s also Red, White & Royal Blue, a charming, gorgeous romantic comedy out on Prime Video based on Casey McQuiston’s bestselling 2019 novel. Starring Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine, it is the perfect pick for the weekend. You can thank me later.
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