Athena

It's been a busy weekend, and thus I've skipped all of the mainstream theater-based releases. From what I can tell, I'm not missing a whole lot there, but I almost capped my review for the week at Blonde until I was hearing a lot of seemingly under-the-radar buzz about Athena, also debuting on Netflix.

Particularly when buzz is high and the ease/cost of watching is low (aka streaming), I've learned to give films a chance when I have the extra time across a couple sittings. RRR - still one of the year's very best films - taught me that. Couple that with the loudest buzz about Athena's impressive tracking-shot opener and I was hooked. 

Athena (to my memory) is the first French foreign language film I've reviewed. I opted out of the dubs and instead watched with subtitles. Almost immediately, I was hooked into the film and its premise, not to mention the stellar filmmaking that was on display. And at only ~1.5 hours, I figured this was going to be a non-stop ride. 

For the most part, that stands true with Athena. If I were to break the film in thirds, the first 2/3rds are near-perfect, while the final 1/3rd feels a little messier, but still great. It's in that final third that I found my only true faults with the plot, mainly around how it felt like it was extending a certain "trick" for really no reason. I wouldn't want to spoil it, but I distinctly remember asking, "Wait, really?" at one point, confused as to why that creative decision was made. I promise it's nothing that ruins the film, it just seems to add a weird layer of confusion and one character's motives in particular seem to flip on a dime. Luckily, despite the increased messiness at the end, the final shots are haunting with a borderline "twist" reveal that's as heartbreaking as it is shocking. 

Aside from minor gripes in the story however, this is a really unique way to frame a film. All we know is that a boy was killed...gunned down...by police. Within days, the French youth have mobilized into a massive uprising, led by the boy's older brother, Karim. We as an audience are quite literally thrown into the middle of an attack by this rebellion group during Athena's first 11 minutes, which is designed as a single, tracking shot. This opening sequence was as awesome and jaw-dropping as I'd heard, taking all the chaos of a riot and putting you right in the middle of it without ever looking away. I have to imagine there were a decent amount of special effects within it, but there too the film uses these minimally and there's a lot of practical effects and big groups of extras to make the whole thing "bigger". We're quickly introduced to other characters, most of which who have compelling arcs and clear goals. Partly related to my complaint earlier, the drug-runner character feels unnecessary to the narrative and introduces a third party group (outside of cops vs. rioters) that didn't land. 

Athena also comes with a high recommendation from me because of just how great the filmmaking is on display. Sure you've got a tight, focused plot. You have strong performances across the board. But the shining star is the direction, editing, and cinematography. The 11 minute single-take at the beginning is the longest, but the rest of Athena rarely has edits or cuts too. There's probably somewhere between 10-20 tracking shots throughout, all of which are impressive in their complexity and chaotic nature. Because of the way these are organized, we're fed some gorgeous visuals while the police and rioters crash. A scene where a huddle of police officers are huddled behind their shields and rioters shoot green, yellow, and red flares at them is particularly memorable.

Striking and compelling visuals are commonplace

Much like the enjoyment I get from the discourse that Blonde is creating, I also enjoy the part of this hobby that allows me to stumble upon other films because of the reviews I see from other critics, professional or blog-writers like myself. Athena is a perfect example of a movie I would have never found otherwise - I could only find it on Netflix by searching for it - and ended up being one of the best of 2022.

CONS

• Latter third feels a bit messy narratively
• Drug-runner character/group isn't necessary
• Some plot choices that I had to ask "Why?"
• A specific character's whiplash motive switch
• I wish the original score had been as special as the film

PROS

• This is some quality filmmaking through and through
• WOW! What an opener!
• Tracking shots consistently used with minimal editing
• Stunning visuals and cinematography
• Focus on practical effects and lots of extras vs. CGI
• Good, some great performances throughout
• Compelling plot throughout with clear character motives and a disorienting (in a good way) dopped-right-into-the-thick-of-it starting point
• Final frames are shocking and reframed much of the film in my eyes
• Intense, rarely lets up and is short and sweet

Rath's Review Score | 9/10