Luke McWilliams gives his review of the 2021 film, Sweet Girl, starring Jason Momoa and Isabela Merced.
Ray Cooper (Jason Momoa) lives with his unwell wife Amanda (Adria Arjona) and their young daughter Rachel (Isabela Merced). Ray is told that BioPrime CEO Simon Keeley (Justin Bartha) has pulled a potentially life-saving drug for Amanda off the market days before her cancer treatment. Ray calls into a live debate and tells Simon that, if he doesn’t reverse his decision, he’ll kill him. Soon Amanda dies and Ray plans his revenge.
After producing multiple projects starring Momoa, Brian Mendoza takes the directing reins with lead Momoa also producing and writing. Like Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson and Arnold Schwarzenegger, Momoa is known as an action star with some key qualities that he does very well. It must be disappointing for fans, then, to see his action leading-man potential squandered here to make way for a questionable plot.
Odd, too, is the choice to make the subject of Ray’s fury so far removed from its cause. Ray goes after the head of a conglomerate who, while immoral, has made a business decision that may or may not have consequences on countless people’s lives, not just Amanda’s. Ray’s scheming for revenge then, also with the distance of time, seems too premeditated; not the actions of a hero, nor someone to cheer for.
Verdict: A solid project with beautiful cinematography by Barry Ackroyd let down by a wildly ambitious reveal that hampers Momoa’s action lead potential. 2.5 stars.
Sweet Girl is streaming on Netflix.
Luke McWilliams | themovieclub.net
Read more:
