Action thriller
Spy film with a difference: “Argylle”
Aiden (Sam Rockwell) comes to the aid of Elly (Bryce Dallas Howard) in “Argylle.” photo
© Peter Mountain/Universal Pictures/dpa
At first glance, “Argylle” seems like an action-packed spy crime thriller. But then the story about a book author and several spies turns out to be a genre breaker with many twists and turns.
In keeping with the mysterious content, no one knows exactly who is behind the debut author “Elly Conway”. However, your manuscript must have convinced several decision-makers at once, as the film was already planned and implemented before the book was published.
“When I read this early draft of the manuscript, I felt like it was the most incredible and original spy franchise since Ian Fleming’s books from the ’50s. This will reinvent the spy genre,” said director Vaughin in an interview.
This may be due to the many layers and plot twists that “Argylle” plays with. That’s not only the name of the mysterious book author “Elly Conway”, but also the main character of the film – herself an author who became famous with the spy book series “Argylle”.
Agents, spies, secrets
Elly (Bryce Dallas Howard) lives in seclusion in a beautiful lake house with her beloved cat Alfie. As she and Alfie take the train to Elly’s parents’ house, her own spy story catches up with her: several strangers attack her out of nowhere, a strange man named Aidan Wilde (Sam Rockwell) intervenes and in turn explains that he is also a spy.
Apparently Elly’s spy story is so similar to the plans of a real spy organization that she is targeted by secret agents. A breathless journey around the planet begins, in which the fictional and real worlds become increasingly blurred. Nothing more can be revealed at this point without giving too much away.
However, the film’s great strength is not just the cleverly conceived plot, as is known from crime novels in the Knives Out series. With its funny dialogues and fight scenes that are sometimes exaggerated to the point of absurdity – including 80s disco music in the background – “Argylle” doesn’t take itself too seriously. Instead, the film plays with the clichés of the spy classics à la Bond and sets its own new accents.
Director Vaughn explained that he wanted to make a film that his two daughters would like – unfortunately still a rarity in the spy thriller genre, which has so far been dominated by middle-aged men. Through the lovingly designed characters, the exciting network of relationships and the film’s many levels, the filmmakers have succeeded in attracting not only fans of breathless chase scenes, but also moviegoers for whom action-packed shooting around alone is not enough.
The daughters of Vaughn and wife Claudia Schiffer definitely liked the film: Alfie the cat is played by none other than Chip, the family cat – who, like Dua Lipa, makes an excellent film debut in her first major role.
Argylle, USA 2023, 139 min., FSK from 12, by Matthew Vaughn and Jason Fuchs, with Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, Henry Cavill, Dua Lipa, Bryan Cranston and Samuel L. Jackson