Jason Momoa and Isabela Merced Star in Sweet Girl, a Disappointing Action Thriller
By Tom Soares
A 90’s style revenge thriller with a superficial plot and just okay acting. That’s Sweet Girl, the latest Netflix action drama starring Jason Momoa (Aquaman) and Isabela Merced (Dora and the Lost City of Gold).
Directed by Brian Andrew Mendoza and written by Phillip Eisner and Gregg Hurwitz, Sweet Girl shows what happens when a grieving Pittsburg man, Ray Cooper (Momoa), sets out to revenge the death of his wife, who’s life-saving cancer medication was maliciously pulled off the market by Simon Keeley (Justin Bartha), the powerful CEO of a pharmaceutical company called BioPrime.
Suddenly caught in the middle of a dangerous political scheme, Cooper is forced to become a fugitive from the FBI in order to protect what’s left of his family: his only daughter Rachel (Merced).
Released over the weekend on Netflix, there isn’t much to expect from Sweet Girl, a movie that although not completely bad, doesn’t bring anything special and tries too hard to convince viewers that the story being told is worth watching until the end, when in reality there’s nothing to miss.
Sweet Girl is the first feature-length film of Brian Andrew Mendoza, a producer-turned-director who has made a name for himself working with Jason Momoa in movies such as Road to Paloma and Braven, and Frontier, a short-lived Netflix original series cancelled a few years back.
Throughout Sweet Girl there’s plenty of evidence to the fact that Mendonza has the potential to become a strong and solid filmmaker with his very own point-of-view, and it was clear that even though some of his decisions worked against him and his vision, most of the movie’s problems originated at and were never corrected during the writing process.
Unfortunately, Sweet Girl falls into the trap of becoming the kind of movie that only worries about its plot but never develops its story, and the screenplay produced by Eisner and Hurwitz fails to bring credibility to anything that’s shown on screen.
And that’s not to say these were the only problems here, far from it. Casting also didn’t do Sweet Girl any favors by deciding to bring Justin Bartha on board as the mean-spirited and cynic CEO Simon Keeley, someone akin to Martin Shkreli, who in 2015 became known as the “pharma bro” and is now serving a seven year sentence in federal prison. Bartha just doesn’t have it, and his performance as Keeley was robotic and unconvincing. Same for Jason Momoa, who's a great comedy and action star but doesn’t deliver as a drama actor.
The “absence” of a strong male lead greatly favored the talented Isabela Merced, who freshly out of the success of Dora and the Last City of Gold and Spirit Untamed single-handedly carried the dramatic weight of Sweet Girl on her back, and former Private Practice actor Amy Brenneman, who’s short appearance as the popular democratic congresswoman Diana Morgan gives more acting credibility to a movie that otherwise wouldn’t have any.
Additionally, Sweet Girl could have used some extra time developing its themes, such as the politicization of healthcare, grief and mental health. Brushing these topics off to the side and using it as mere plot devices without zero context on how it influences the characters, not only on a general level but on a deep, personal one was a disservice to the storytelling and the viewers.
It is unfortunate that so many elements worked out against Sweet Girl, a movie that otherwise would have been impressive and a total blast from the past with its 1990’s vibe and visuals. And although the issues discussed heavily influence how much of the story you buy and how much fun you have, the third act does bring a surprising revelation that ties everything together nicely, just not enough to prevent Sweet Girl from becoming a completely forgettable movie.