Jolt movie review & film summary (2021)

When the esoteric Justin (Jai Courtney) enters Lindy’s life as a blind date, one she first dismisses quickly but then warms up to, things start to look up for her. Could a chance at temporary courtship, even romance and marriage be in store for her? Unfortunately, Justin doesn’t stick around long enough for Lindy to find out. Falling victim to a shady murder scheme after a romantic night with Lindy and leaving her behind as the prime suspect, the high-powered lawyer exits the picture at once, setting off a pair of detectives—Laverne Cox’s fiercely proficient Nevin and Bobby Cannavale’s amusingly slack Vicars—on her tail. Armed with nothing other than a random set of physical skills and peculiar condition that makes her fearless, Lindy takes matters into her own hands to both clear her name and find Justin’s killers.

Not unlike David Leitch’s recent “Atomic Blonde,” “Jolt” takes discernible pride in its vibrant color palette, quick-witted cinematography, ostentatiously detailed production design (if you can forgive the film’s New York looking painfully set-designed and nothing like the actual city) as well as badass female lead unafraid to punch and combat her way forward. But it also suffers from debuting scribe Scott Wascha’s haphazardly written script—a bug that also put a mighty dent in the aforesaid Charlize Theron-starrer.

In that regard, “Jolt” unleashes a pair of unconvincing twists and turns during its final act, getting there by compellingly directed fight sequences that hint at the kind of scrappiness Wexler had previously shown with the likes of “Hysteria” and “Buffaloed.” But despite an obviously resourceful filmmaker at the helm and a more-than-game Beckinsale with proven genre chops, the film’s ultimately empty action bores more than it intrigues. So much that when the reveal that Wascha’s got up his sleeve finally arrives with the confidence of a thunderbolt, it fizzles at once, barely earning a shrug instead of the shudder it aims for.

Now available on Amazon.