Movie: Operation Fortune Ruse de Guerre
Production Companies: Miramax, STXfilms, Toff Guy Films
Director: Guy Ritchie
Producers: Guy Ritchie, Ivan Atkinson, Bill Block
Scriptwriters: Ivan Atkinson, Marn Davies, Guy Ritchie
Main Cast: Jason Statham, Aubrey Plaza, Josh Hartnett, Cary Elwes, Bugzy Malone, Hugh Grant
Release Date: April 7th 2023 (UK)
Running Time: 114 minutes
Certificate: 15
Introduction
Now I hear you asking, didn’t this film come out in April in the UK so why am I only just reviewing it now? Well, because Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre just came onto Amazon Prime. And honestly, it continues Guy Ritchie’s solid upward trend since The Gentlemen and Wrath of Man. At least until Disney comes calling for another mediocre live action blockbuster they need him for… Anyway, Operation Fortune is a fun little watch with some fun performances, good score and great fight scenes to make arguably the best encapsulation of a modern Guy Ritchie film. So, without further ado here is my review of the film.
Synopsis
Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre follows Orson Fortune (Statham), a super spy working for contractor Nathan Jasmine (Elwes), as they are tasked with recovering a dangerous programmable AI (called the Handle) capable of bringing down the world. Alongside Fortune in Jasmine’s crew are skilled hacker Sarah (Plaza) and front man JJ Davies (Malone) as they race to retrieve the Handle before a rival of Nathan’s, Mike, or Ukrainian mobsters working for arms dealer Greg Simmonds (Grant).
But to get near Simmonds and retrieve the Handle, the gang blackmails his favourite filmstar, Danny Francesco (Hartnett), to get them in Simmonds good books. Yeah that last part feels weirdly similar to The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent which is odd but doesn’t detract from the rest of the very silly plot. Anyway, with the synopsis out of the way let’s get into the analysis portion of the review.
Analysis
Jason Statham’s Performance in Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre
To begin my analysis of Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, I’m going to discuss Jason Statham’s performance. Now, spectacular name aside this is another solid performance from Statham which particularly shows off his charisma. Take for example, the scene where Fortune blackmails Francesco to come with them to Greg Simmond’s party. How does he do this? By threatening to release a sextape of Danny and his sister. That scene, disgusting connotations aside, really shows off the charisma of Statham. This is shown as he calmly explains why Danny is coming with them. Oh, also his charisma is particularly on display when he’s first meeting Greg Simmonds. Overall it feels like a weird coming together of British cinema.
By that I mean Hugh Grant and Jason Statham in the same film… Anyway, here Statham shows off his action hero charisma by squaring off in a witty exchange with Grant. Anyway, the other major highlight of Statham’s performance is his fight scenes. An example of this is his one with Vincent, one of Mike’s henchmen. Not only is it a very well done scene from Statham as he repeatedly stops the fight to crack wise but it continues the trend of Guy Ritchie having great fight scenes. So, overall it’s a fun charismatic performance from Statham which really feels like an old school Bond performance at points.
Soundtrack in Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre
Continuing my analysis of Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, I’m going to discuss the film’s soundtrack. Now, the film’s composer (Chris Benstead) also composed Ritchie’s two most recent films so the score was always bound to be great. And shock horror it’s pretty great. Mostly, for the recurring theme which is very addictive to listen to. Oh and it sounds like it was composed for a film with a lot of action in the Middle East.
Also, the score does shine during the aforementioned fight scene between Fortune and Vincent. This is as it balances the speed and intensity of the fight with the tense atmosphere of the fundraiser above. And once again to reiterate that the main theme is glorious and I will defend that fact. So, very much like the overall film it’s pretty good with a few high points that really accentuate the potential the film had.
Bugzy Malone’s Performance in Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre
So to conclude my analysis of Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, I’m going to discuss the performance of Bugzy Malone as JJ Davies. Now, for anyone who’s seen the Gentlemen, imagine Ernie if he was a bit more tech savvy and that’s about it. Not that it’s a bad performance as Malone throws himself into the role and his chemistry with Statham and Plaza is a big highlight of the film.
Also, there’s just something inherently great about having a super serious exchange scene all while JJ is running up a hill with a sniper to get in position. This really sums up the best parts of Malone’s performance. This is as he again shows off the comedic parts of his performance as Ernie merged with the more savvy, wisecracking parts of his JJ performance to make a pretty funny and entertaining performance. Overall, it really sums up the film as it’s just pretty fun and hilarious at points.
Summary
To summarise Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, this is a pretty fun and entertaining film which continues the upward trend of good Guy Ritchie films like the Gentlemen and Wrath of Man. While it may not reach the full heights it’s capable of, Operation Fortune is a fun enough way to spend a couple of hours on Prime.
Overall Rating: 6/10 – Reasonable
Target Audience: 15+
Content Warning: Moderate Violence and Gore, Moderate Profanity, Mild Alcohol, Drugs and Smoking, Mild Frightening and Intense Scenes
Recommendation: Yes
