On April 21, the action-adventure film “Unanswered” was released on Apple TV+. In it, retired Captain America Chris Evans asked the beautiful Ana de Armas on a date, but then greatly regretted it. In the review below we tell you what could interfere with the happiness of the sweet couple and whether it is interesting to watch their adventures.
Pros: bright and dynamic plot, presence of several really funny episodes, beautiful actors in the leading roles, good action Cons: excessive typicality and irritating plot lapses, generally weak comedic component, meaningless cameos for the sake of cameos
“No Answer” / Ghosted
Genre: romantic comedy, adventure-spy action
Directed by Dexter Fletcher
Starring: Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Adrien Brody, Amy Sedaris, Tim Blake Nelson
Apple TV+ premiere
Year of release 2023
IMDb website
Benevolent farmer Cole Turner can’t get his personal life back on track. One day at the market he meets the beautiful Sadie and invites her on a date. The girl agrees, and now the lovebirds are singing karaoke, looking at the original “Lady with an Umbrella” by Monet in a Washington art gallery and kissing against the backdrop of an orange sunset.
After a scene of indecently innocent sex accompanied by a pop song, Cole, inspired by happiness, immediately tells his parents (and we learn that the loafer still lives with them) about the girl of his dreams. He begins to write her one message after another. But the trouble is, Sadie stubbornly ignores the text from her obsessive boyfriend, and even miraculous emojis don’t help.
But the annoying seedling seller doesn’t think of giving up. The young man learns that the object of his adoration is in London. There is no shame in going not only there, but also to the ends of the world, for such a girl. So Cole quickly packs his bags with the intention of making a grand romantic surprise gesture. But on the spot the poor fellow meets some very gloomy men.
Soon he wakes up in the basement with a bag on his head, and an extremely unpleasant lover of exotic insects threatens the hostage with violence. Cole is at risk of being stung by an Asian hornet or, worse, by Paraponera ants. It turns out that the bite of the latter can even make you wet yourself. In exchange for dry pants, the guy is required to reveal some very important password.
Dexter Fletcher’s Unanswered starts out like your average rom-com with attractive stars.
There is a light, relaxed atmosphere, jokes, flirting, in short, everything that can be found in the films of Garry Marshall and called typical genre tropes. But the film quickly gets rid of its playful mood and prefers to be an adventure-spy action film.
This change in genre priorities can hardly be taken by surprise. At least as much as the gender role reversal that is Evans’ perplexed character. The trailer also promised fun chases, shootouts and massacres, so any surprises are excluded. However, in reality everything turns out to be not so rosy.
The combat part begins, however, quite vigorously.
Ana de Armas, with truly Terminator-like enthusiasm, bursts into the frame to save the simpleton, and he, in turn, very skillfully portrays uselessness and confusion. The villainous faces break with almost John-like effect. The dynamics of the cuts can easily rival the clip tempo of the late Michael Bay or Paul W. S. Anderson.
The chase scene across the mountainous landscape of Pakistan is especially spectacular, albeit with noticeably soapy backdrops. There is not a drop of realism here, but it is fun and interesting to watch. The problem is that after 40 minutes of such fun, a team of experienced and successful screenwriters has little to offer. The chemistry between the main characters fades away as quickly as the effect of the audience’s initial infatuation.
Subsequently, the story gradually turns into a plot mush with sluggish storytelling and stiff genre clichés.
The creators seem to forget not only about Cole’s asthma, but also about the manifestation of the slightest imagination. There will be a MacGuffin, standard for spy passions, another, almost caricatured, villainous performance by Adrien Brody, obligatory and humorless quarrels between the main characters, etc.
“Unanswered” cannot boast of a high-quality comedy component.
This reads like a feeble attempt to laugh at people’s constant efforts to put themselves in the best light on first dates. Plus another variation on the theme of the TV show “Who’s on top?” (see the answer in the title picture) and literally a couple of funny moments. But that’s all.
In addition, the authors manage to use cameos toothlessly. Surprise appearances look extremely stupid. At one point, it may seem as if they are trying to sell the audience on genuine Marvel fan service.
Does all of the above mean that the new product from Apple TV+ is a completely useless movie? Not at all.
Overall, this is an acceptable option for an evening that definitely requires good beer and all sorts of goodies to go with it. Moreover, the audience will certainly be pleased to watch how “the best buttocks of America” are being toned and Ana de Armas is undergoing a dress rehearsal before the upcoming performance in pointe shoes.
Conclusion:
“No Answer” tries to sit on two chairs at once, but can’t get comfortable in at least one of them
