Movie Review Those Who Wish Me Dead (2022)

 

Those Who Wish Me Dead | 2022 | 1h 40m
Genre: Drama/Thriller/Psychological/Action | Country: US
Director: Taylor Sheridan | Writers: Michael Koryta, Charles Leavitt, Taylor Sheridan
Cast: Angelina Jolie, Nicholas Hoult, Finn Little
IMDB: 6
My Rate: 7/10

Hannah helps Connor escape from the assassins who want to kill him, even though Hannah has to fight her own inner trauma.

 
Warning:

Contains scenes of violence, murder, and alcohol.

 
Synopsis:

Hannah (Angelina Jolie), a smokejumper whose job is to protect the forest from fires. Hannah experiences a deep trauma where she misreads the wind direction, causing the fire to spread. She has to watch three innocent teenagers trapped and burned alive in front of her without being able to do anything. Although the incident has passed, the trauma still haunts her.

Connor (Finn Little) along with his father, Owen, who is a forensic accountant, must flee from the pursuit of assassins. Owen realizes that he is in danger after seeing the news of his colleague's death on television. Owen plans to take Connor to his brother-in-law, Ethan, who is a deputy sheriff in Park Country and also Hannah's colleague.

Their journey is unsuccessful after the assassins manage to find them. Owen, who is in critical condition, gives Connor the evidence he found and tells Connor to hide. Connor runs away after making sure the assassins don't see him. However, this creates a new problem.

The boss of the assassins doesn't like this. They demand to find Connor and kill him. Connor meets Hannah and asks for her help. After reading the letter left by Owen, Hannah rushes to take Owen to town. However, a large forest fire deliberately started by the assassins stops them.

Will Connor and Hannah escape from the pursuit of the assassins?

 

Review:

Those Who Wish Me Dead is a film adapted from the novel of the same name by Michael Koryta. The story idea presented is quite interesting. Although there is confusion in the film title with the main character in the story. Because 'Me' in the story title more accurately refers to Connor, it's just that Hannah's character seems more prominent.

In terms of the background of the problem, it feels weak. Until the end of the story, it is not clearly shown the source of the chase that is happening. At the beginning, Owen tells Connor that he is a forensic accountant and finds a secret. However, it is not explained exactly what the secret is and who feels disadvantaged to have to hire assassins. So the essence of the 'hunt' feels weak.

Many of the background stories of each character are not presented in depth. It seems like it wants to explain many things but doesn't understand the direction and connection of the story to the main story. Once again, it makes the main story seem like an unimportant addition.

The many stories presented at the beginning make the film feel a little boring. The tension only feels in the middle of the story when the chase begins. Even though the chase scene is still less tense than the scene where Allison, Ethan's wife, fights the assassins while heavily pregnant. Although it might be difficult to understand when a 6-month pregnant woman can ride a horse, shoot, even climb a tall tower carrying a weapon.

Medina Senghore's acting as Allison looks very good and more attention-grabbing even though this character is not the main character. Jolie's acting is pretty good, even though for some reason her aura as Hannah's character feels weak. There are still many things that can be improved in the presentation of this film.

The advantage of this film is the effects used to show the large forest fire that occurred. The fire looks really real. And the makeup used is also appropriate for each character and story condition.

Overall, this film still has a clear storyline and is worth watching.

 

Memorable Scene:

Connor's father, who is seriously injured from the car accident they experienced, still tries hard to give Connor directions and encouragement. This is done so that Connor can hide and save himself. In this scene, we see how parents still prioritize the safety of their children even when they are in critical condition.

 
Memorable Dialogue:

"Are you someone I can trust?"

 

Ending:

Happy Ending

 

Recommendation:

Worth to Watch

 

(Aluna)