Sweet Girl (film)

Sweet Girl is a 2021 American action thriller film directed by Brian Andrew Mendoza in his feature directorial debut and written by Philip Eisner and Gregg Hurwitz. The film stars Jason Momoa, Isabela Merced, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Adria Arjona, Raza Jaffrey, Justin Bartha, Lex Scott Davis, Michael Raymond-James and Amy Brenneman.

Sweet Girl
Official release poster
Directed byBrian Andrew Mendoza
Written by
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyBarry Ackroyd
Edited by
Music bySteven Price
Production
companies
  • ASAP Entertainment
  • On The Roam
  • Pride of Gypsies
Distributed byNetflix
Release date
  • August 20, 2021 (2021-08-20) (United States)
Running time
110 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Sweet Girl was released on Netflix on August 20, 2021, and received negative reviews from critics for its clichéd story and wasted potential, but its stunts were positively noted.

Netflix announced in October 2021 that 68 million accounts had watched at least 2-minutes of the film within 28 days of release.[1]

Plot

The Cooper family live in Pittsburgh and are happy and content together. However, things go downhill when Amanda Cooper falls ill with cancer. Her husband, survival expert Ray, is told that a potentially life-saving drug for Amanda was pulled off the market due to BioPrime CEO Simon Keeley paying the manufacturer to delay production. Amanda passes away, devastating Ray and their daughter, Rachel.

Six months later, Ray receives a call from journalist Martin Bennett, who tells him that he has evidence of criminal activity committed by BioPrime. They meet on a subway, followed by Rachel and a hitman named Santos. Bennett explains that BioPrime has been bribing anyone who questions their dirty deeds, but before he can share more, Santos stabs him dead, then stabs Ray and knocks out Rachel, leaving them both on the platform to die.

Two years later, Ray has been obsessively tracking Keeley's movements. He infiltrates BioPrime's charity auction for Keeley, who tells him to go after BioPrime's chairman, Vinod Shah. In the brutal fight, Ray kills a bodyguard and strangles Keeley to death. Having killed two men, he quickly flees with Rachel and they hide in a motel outside of town. Rachel, concerned that her father has gone too far, contacts FBI Agent Sarah Meeker and tries to convince her to look into BioPrime. Two mercenaries break into the motel to capture them; Ray kills them both. He then goes after Shah but Santos appears and shoots Shah dead, causing Ray and Rachel to flee.

The pair meets Santos in a diner, where Santos admits that he is sympathetic to Ray's cause. He reveals that Congresswoman Diana Morgan is his employer, giving Ray a lead, but warns that the next time they meet, he will kill them.

Returning to the city, Ray is ambushed by the FBI and flees to the roof of PNC Park. As Meeker tries to talk him down, it's revealed that "Ray" is actually Rachel. Ray had died from his wounds at the subway two years ago. Rachel, suffering from PTSD and dissociative identity disorder, devoted herself to finishing his quest for vengeance, broken after losing both her parents months apart. Presently, she jumps into the Allegheny River but is retrieved and put in an ambulance. After breaking free, she locates Morgan's campaign office, where Santos attacks her. After another brutal fight, she manages to stab Santos to death.

She confronts Morgan and secretly records her admitting she was bribed by BioPrime for government contracts and had ordered the hit on Bennett and Ray. Rachel flees and sends the recording to the FBI. In the aftermath, Morgan is arrested for her crimes, while Rachel obtains a fake passport, exchanges her money for cryptocurrency, and boards a plane to an uncertain future.[2]

Cast

Production

In July 2019, it was announced Jason Momoa had joined the cast of the film, with Brian Andrew Mendoza directing from a screenplay by Philip Eisner, Gregg Hurwitz and Will Staples, Momoa will also serve as a producer on the film, with Netflix distributing.[3] In October 2019, Isabela Merced joined the cast of the film.[4] In December 2019, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Raza Jaffrey, Adria Arjona, Justin Bartha, Lex Scott Davis, Michael Raymond-James, Dominic Fumusa, Brian Howe, Nelson Franklin, and Reggie Lee joined the cast of the film.[5]

Principal photography commenced on November 11, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and wrapped on February 11, 2020.[6][7]

Release

It was released on August 20, 2021 on Netflix.[8][9]

Reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 24% based on 59 reviews, with an average rating of 4.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Burdened with action clichés and tripped up by a late plot twist, Sweet Girl wastes a potentially resonant story and some solid work from its well-matched leads."[10] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 46 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[11]

References

  1. "Every Viewing Statistic Netflix Has Released So Far". What's on Netflix. October 25, 2021.
  2. Mendelson, Scott. "Netflix's Most-Watched Movie, 'Sweet Girl,' Has A Huge Twist That Won't Please Anyone". Forbes.
  3. McNary, Dave (July 29, 2019). "Jason Momoa to Produce, Star in Thriller 'Sweet Girl' for Netflix". Variety. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  4. Sneider, Jeff (October 21, 2019). "Exclusive: 'Dora' Star Isabela Merced Joins Jason Momoa in Netflix Movie 'Sweet Girl'". Collider. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  5. N'Duka, Amanda (December 12, 2019). "Jason Momoa Netflix Film 'Sweet Girl' Adds Cast". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  6. "Sweet Girl". Production List. October 7, 2019. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  7. "Thousands of extras sought for 'Sweet Girl' movie filming in Pittsburgh". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. October 17, 2019. Retrieved November 11, 2019.
  8. Fleming, Mike Jr. (January 12, 2021). "Netflix Unveils A 2021 Film Slate With Bigger Volume & Star Wattage; Scott Stuber On The Escalating Film Ambition". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  9. Rubin, Rebecca (April 27, 2021). "Netflix's Packed Summer Movie Slate Includes 'Kissing Booth 3' and Bob Ross Documentary". Variety.
  10. "Sweet Girl". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
  11. "Sweet Girl Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved August 22, 2021.
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