'The Courier (2020)' is a cold-war espionage thriller based on true events that tells the story of an ordinary businessman who, with the help of a Russian informant, ends up smuggling state secrets out of the USSR and into the hands of MI6 and the CIA in an effort to prevent nuclear war. For reasons that ought to be obvious, the film feels incredibly relevant at the time of writing; one can only hope that history is not repeating itself. Though the real-life story on which this is based is an interesting and important one, the piece itself is sadly rather basic and, even, a little bit flat. The first act is actually really slow, while the third shifts its focus away from low-key spying and into much more overtly horrific territory. This latter segment is probably the most straightforwardly compelling part of the picture, as it portrays a painful situation and moves at a much faster pace. That isn't to imply that there isn't merit in the preceding acts, though. The flick is, at times, an engaging experience that plays with genre tropes in an expected yet grounded way. The performances are all solid and, for the most part, the tone is consistently portentous. However, the thing is just a tad dull overall. It's hard to even describe why, actually. There's just this slightly intangible 'good enough' quality to it, a quality that many pictures of a similar ilk share. It's a respectable effort, but it doesn't go above and beyond what it initially sets itself up to be. It's a decent historical thriller, but it isn't a great one. 6/10.
Review of The Courier
