Cherry (2021)

Cherry (2021)

 

4/10

Starring

Tom Holland

Ciara Bravo

Jack Reynor

 

Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo

 

This movie has one great thing going for it: it’s easily forgettable, so I know the dread of seeing it won’t last long.

Like the movie’s portrayal of Tom Holland’s character, Cherry, a drug addict—I think many people have a high for Tom Holland. I’m seeing this film based on the numerous good reviews, but after watching it myself, I wonder, what was it about this film that people liked?

It’s not believable. If it were that easy to rob banks, everyone would be doing it. He literally just walks in, and no guard tries to stop him. Then his relationship with his wife and their whole drug addiction arc is just silly. The movie sticks to a formula we’ve seen play out numerous times. Add to that, this movie is way too long and not a single moment captures your attention enough to make you go, “Hmm.”

Even though the movie does carry a lot of visuals, this first take of the Russo brothers after Avengers: Endgame (2019) is a complete dud. I don’t get why the movie is over two hours long, telling us a story we’ve seen play out so many times, and what’s with the whole fourth-wall breaking thing? That didn’t last.

The plot starts with us seeing Cherry holding a bank cashier at gunpoint. Then, we get to see what led him to that situation. We start with his life as a young man, falling in love, and when she broke his heart, the moron enrolled himself in the army. The movie then drags us through a wasted endeavor to sow the seed of trauma. We’re supposed to feel sorry for Cherry after seeing all he went through when he enlisted. Then, he gets out of the army and becomes a drug addict. He’s married to the woman who jilted him, they got back together, and he drags her into his drug habit.

Soon, every penny they had goes into drugs, and one day, while high, they freak out, get rid of some expensive drugs, and end up owing a lot of money. Cherry then resorts to bank robbery to clear their debt and further drown himself and his wife in drugs. How their story goes from bad, to worse, to good again is what this movie tries to make you think is entertainment.

One thing I give Holland credit for is wanting to diversify his acting career, taking on different roles that put him in a different spotlight from his MCU role and his solo Spider-Man movies in 2017 and 2019.

That said, I wouldn’t advise anyone to waste their time watching this film.