Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021) Review

 "Assume the worst-case scenario.  Assume catastrophe, and act accordingly."

-Arthur

Smokejumper Hannah Faver (Angelina Jolie) is posted in a fire lookout tower for the summer.  One day, she comes across a young boy, Connor (Finn Little), in the wilderness.  Connor is on the run from a pair of assassins because he knows too much.  Hannah promises to protect Connor, but the assassins start a wildfire to cover their tracks, making it much more difficult for Hannah and Connor to survive.

What Works:

This movie is gorgeous.  An utter feast for the eyes, especially for someone who likes mountain wilderness.  There are some stunning panoramic shots around Hannah's lookout tower.  Later, our characters find themselves in the middle of the fire, which looks incredible.  It's mostly CGI, but it still looks great and we get even more stunning, if dangerous, visuals.

The action sequences are a lot of fun.  Mountain road assassination attempts, cat-and-mouse chases, a lookout tower shootout, and a fight near the fire.  These are all creative and well-crafted sequences that are very tense and a lot of fun.  Taylor Sheridan has proven himself as a director already and continues to do so here.

The best characters in the movie are the assassins; Patrick (Nicolas Hoult) and Jack (Aidan Gillen).  The two of them are efficient, calculated, and ruthless.  They never really get emotional and focus on their best tactical move, no matter who is hurt or killed along the way.  They are a scary pair and the only reason they aren't successful from the get go is they aren't given enough men to do the job by their employers.  It's the two of them vs. the world it feels like.  I was assuming the film would have scores of unmemorable mooks out in the wilderness, but instead we just focus on these two.

Finally, this is a problem-solving movie. The characters all face many problems and most of the scenes are simply them talking about various solutions and trying to solve the problem to various degrees of success. I like this kind of movie, especially when the characters talk us through their problem solving process.  That's the kind of stuff I think about when I watch survival movies and I like that these characters do the same.

What Sucks:

The 1st act is a bit of a slog to get through.  Besides Jack and Patrick, none of the characters are very interesting or likable off the bat.  There is a lot of set-up here and it takes awhile for the conflict to reach some of the characters, especially Hannah.  The characters' reactions to the conflict is what makes the movie finally get interesting, but it takes too long to get there.

Another problem with the 1st act is the introduction to the smokejumpers.  None of them are interesting and some of them have some awful dialogue.  We get a scene of them harassing a random couple at a bar.  Why is this here?   Besides Hannah, none of the firefighters are important characters, so why are we spending time with them and why are they being shown to be jerks when they are supposed to be heroic characters. It doesn't make a lot of sense and I found myself very annoyed by them in their handful of scenes.

Finally, I wish this movie had gone a little farther with its premise.  It would have been cool to have more scenes involving the fire and the assassins and Hannah barely interact.  Another action sequence or two would have served the film greatly.  

Verdict:

Once I got through the first act, I really enjoyed Those Who Wish Me Dead.  It's a beautiful film with fun action sequences, effective villains, and plot that focuses on problem-solving.  I wish it had gone a little farther, but it's still a fun time and mostly has got it going on.

 7/10: Good