There are many films and TV shows that revolve around the war on terror. Many of which showcase a cast of characters that fall into archetypes and become pitted against, or alongside, terrorists who have one simple goal to cause chaos. Often, these narratives follow a protagonist with some personal connection to their job. Therefore, they must work harder to combat terrorism. Black Site follows this trope with the central heroine reeling from a terrible loss due to a terrorist attack, but the film is a basic thriller with little to offer audiences who enjoy the genre.

Michelle Monaghan plays Abby Trent, a CIA analyst who lost her husband and daughter to a terrorist attack in Istanbul, Turkey. She is distraught by the loss of her family. Fighting against common sense, she argues her way back to work to discover who ruined her life. She finds herself at a secret facility known as Citadel, the location for suspected terrorists held for “questioning.” What starts as a mission to discover the identity of the elusive Hatchet (Jason Clarke) turns into a deadly game of cat and mouse when he is “captured” and brought in.

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black site review

Black Site is stubbornly basic. The script is a weak replication of standard text for a movie like this. A story like this can only be elevated with exceptional directing or superb acting. The subject matter and the borderline villainous protagonists are left floundering. Black Site should have aspired to be more; it should have reached the standard set by Zero Dark Thirty (the film that should have garnered Jessica Chastain her Oscar), but the film is disturbingly flat. Lifeless. Even in moments where the ensemble is together, jeering each other or offering a sense of community for Abby, the chemistry is simply not there. The seriousness in Jinder Ho’s script is overwhelming when it doesn't have to be.

The movie follows a straightforward plot. However, it is predictably stale and by-the-numbers. The film could have gone harder on the violence or the execution of the deadly cat and mouse game to combat that. In a sequence where Clarke’s Hatchett escapes, he reveals his lethal methods involve sneaking up on people and simply stabbing them. There is no finesse. There is no artistry to this madman’s murderous technique. The chatter before his arrival paints him as a diabolical killer, but when we see him, he is just some guy preying on the apparent weaknesses of the establishment and the rules they play by.

black site review

Excitement is manufactured post-escape with a score that spells out the doom and gloom of the situation. Actors spitting out curses as they run roughshod with guns and flashlights are supposed to induce a sense of frenzy and danger, but all it does is prevent one from dozing off peacefully. The tension between characters comes from superficial disagreements, which ultimately does little to win the audience over to their respective sides. Every action taken seems counterintuitive in the film and within the film's construction. Black Site is merely a regurgitation of all the war on terror tropes that viewers have come to know.

In a way, the movie could have gone beyond the subgenre norm of political thrillers, instead going full horror with a deadly killer taking out each character one by one. However, it would have needed a sharper script and engaging characters to root for or against. There is little buildup around Hatchet’s kills. Too many of the characters are standing idly by, bickering or yelling at each other about their predicament. The facility isn’t well-used as a site for danger, where the literal boogeyman lurks around every corner. The horror elements are hinted at but, sadly, never adequately utilized. The film has a satisfactory performance by Michelle Monaghan, which is probably all that it is good for. The ending spells out the potential for a Bourne-type series, but with the first entry being so blandly put together, there is very little hope that a sequel would be any better.

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Black Site opens in theatres and is available on VOD starting Tuesday, May 3. It is 92 minutes long and rated R for language and violence.

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