The perfect role for Maggy Q was waiting for her in The Protégé. On the widely-popular Designated Survivor (that eventually landed on Netflix), she was kicking butt and taking names for the U.S. Government as agent Hannah Wells. Here, as Anna, she mirrors a legendary assassin that saved her life and raised her as a contract killer.
Unlike her Netflix character, Anna doesn’t have any rules to follow outside of ‘kill the mark’. Raised by Samuel L. Jackson’s character Moody (a grumpy, baby boomer assassin with a bad cough), Anna does a balancing act of grieving, self-discovery, and revenge plotting (with a dash of corny dialogue).
Michael Keaton plays a suave fixer named Rembrandt, whose job is to protect his boss’s identity and fix whatever mistakes his henchmen might make. His mysterious demeanor and casual way of carrying himself is appealing to Anna but the film does a good job of avoiding a sappy love story out of it. Granted, Rembrandt could’ve been played by anybody besides Michael Keaton, but he brought a lighthearted and fun element to the character.
The film is what an action film should be: action. It’s always more impressive to see women take the lead in action films since there are countless male heroes to watch. We’ve seen Charlize Theron, last month we saw Karen Gillan, and to end the summer, we have Maggie Q.
The Protégé gets a 9 out of 10. If you’re not familiar with Maggie Q, this film is a great reflection of her talent. As a bookworm and entrepreneur for cover, she casually disarms gunmen and doesn’t flinch at interrogation tactics. She’s all business.
-Jon J.