Jessica Alba unleashes her internal Rambo in “Set off Warning,” whereby her energetic U.S. army officer will get pulled homeward by tragedy, solely to uncover corruption she’ll have to scrub up earlier than leaving once more. Indonesian director Mouly Surya’s well-crafted first English-language function is simply too formulaically contrived to qualify as “elevated style” or to boast the non-public stamp of her prior work. Nonetheless, it’s an entertaining, pacey motion melodrama that ought to do effectively for Netflix, the place it launches on June 21.
After two intriguingly conceived however considerably imprecise preliminary options, Surya made an assertive impression with 2018’s “Marlina the Assassin in 4 Acts.” That hanging “feminist outlaw Western” distinctively juggled components of revenge thriller, black comedy and character-driven social critique. Her extra conventionally business American debut is one other vengeance story pushed by a strong-willed, succesful feminine protagonist. However that is additionally the primary movie on which Surya has not had a hand within the screenplay. The one she’s been handed (credited to “John Brancato & Josh Olson and Haley Gross”) gives a viable if acquainted pileup of perilous issues that make for a relatively impersonal finish consequence.
We first meet Particular Forces commando Parker Calvo (Alba) in Syria, the place she and a driver try to outrun enemy hearth within the desert. Their mission is left murky, however in any case she alone survives it, solely to be told that her father has simply died Stateside. The bearer of that unhealthy information is ex-beau Jesse (Mark Webber), now sheriff of their shared hometown Creation, N.M. Upon her return, nonetheless, that Biblical-sounding monicker proves ill-fit to present goings-on, which embody a rash of strong-arm thefts. She quick suspects these crimes are linked to good-guy Jesse’s loutish bad-boy brother Elvis (Jake Weary). He’d have a protracted rap sheet already if not for the interventions of their father, political opportunist Sen. Ezekiel Swann (Anthony Michael Corridor).
It doesn’t take lengthy for Parker to suspect the demise of her padre (Alejandro De Hoyos, seen in flashbacks) was neither the accident nor suicide Jesse suggests. A risk of foul play grows stronger as soon as she realizes Elvis and his goons are promoting stolen army weapons — maybe hiding them within the deserted mineshafts that have been dad’s “favourite place,” and the place he died in a questionable cave-in.
As our heroine’s sleuthing exposes increasingly dust, her few dependable allies embody amiable native stoner Mikey (Gabriel Basso) and quick-witted Particular Forces colleague Spider (Tone Bell). These two male sidekicks are vibrant spots in a stable help forged right here, although nobody actually will get the character-writing bandwidth (not even Corridor, a creditably great distance from “Sixteen Candles”) to render his position memorable.
Govt producer Alba was clearly attracted by Parker’s powerful competence, which is lent a barely gimmicky edge by her dad-fostered penchant for knives over artillery. The star throws herself into the frequent motion, although fights aren’t all the time absolutely convincing — ditto explosions and different FX right here, in addition to Parker’s fixed stumbling onto crime scenes, clues, incriminating conversations, and so on. The script additionally flirts with factors of political relevancy, from unlawful doings on the “darkish net” to immigration points, albeit in a intentionally superficial, “Let’s not offend anybody” manner. The closest it involves going out on a limb is when reactionary fats cat Ezekiel is requested “Why are politicians such liars?,” an accusation that crosses all occasion strains.
Nonetheless, “Set off Warning” is slick and eventful sufficient to take care of viewer engagement. Surya doesn’t exhibit any nice aptitude for constructing suspense or staging violent set-pieces. Nonetheless, the movie carries us alongside on adequate narrative momentum, abetted by the visible polish contributed by cinematographer Zoe White and manufacturing designer Natasha Gerasimova. Much less efficient is Enis Rotthoff’s authentic rating, which feels lower from a well-worn sonic material of ordinary motion bombast.