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It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost 20 years since Pierce Brosnan made his debut as James Bond in GoldenEye. Brosnan’s Bond movies may not have been the franchise’s best, but he always made a cool spy—and that made him a natural choice for director Roger Donaldson’s intense and intricate spy thriller, The November Man.
Brosnan stars as former CIA agent Peter Devereaux. Though he’s been enjoying his retirement in Switzerland for the past five years, Devereaux agrees to one last mission to help an old friend. Recently, a number of people with ties to the man who’s in place to become the next Russian president have been killed. One woman has gotten close enough to get some valuable information—but she’ll only provide the information after the CIA has gotten her safely out of Russia.
Devereaux is requested to help with the extraction. But when the mission takes an unexpected turn, the former agent finds himself facing off against a former student.
This is the kind of movie that just clicks for Brosnan. After all, he gets to be cool and suave and carry a gun—and, from the first scene, he seems completely comfortable in the role. But if you’re expecting the likable heroes, over-the-top villains, and PG-13 action of a Bond movie, you’re in for a big surprise.
The November Man isn’t a black-and-white kind of movie. Instead, as the movie poster suggests, it’s more grey-and-red. Nothing here is quite as it seems. For the most part, it’s tough to tell the good guys from the bad guys—because even the characters that you’re supposed to be rooting for end up doing some pretty appalling things for reasons that aren’t entirely clear. And while that may make for a grittier (and possibly more realistic) crime thriller, it also makes it difficult to get behind any one character—because no one is truly likable.
The action, meanwhile, definitely lives up to the film’s R rating. This isn’t another bloodless spy movie. It’s brutal and bloody and often surprisingly graphic—complete with plenty of slow-motion gunshot wounds.
And the story? Well, it will definitely keep you on your toes—for better or for worse. On one hand, the secrets and lies and double-crosses of the spy game keep things interesting. On the other hand, though, there are so many twists and turns and cloudy connections that it’s virtually impossible to keep everything straight. It’s an extremely complicated story—and some of the explanations fly by so quickly that you might find yourself completely lost after the first 15 minutes or so.
Brosnan certainly makes a charming spy—and fans will want to catch The November Man solely to see the suave star back in action. But his latest spy turn simply isn’t as likable, as memorable, or as enjoyable as his earlier films.
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