Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre

This knockabout spy action-comedy from Guy Ritchie pokes fun at the genre, and provides a couple of hours of light-hearted, undemanding entertainment.

Premise:  Freelance superspy Orson Fortune (Jason Statham) is hired by the British government to retrieve a stolen weapon before it can be sold on the black market by billionaire arms dealer Greg Simmonds (Hugh Grant).  But Orson and his team (which includes Aubrey Plaza and Cary Elwes) find that to infiltrate Greg’s inner circle, they’ll need to recruit Hollywood movie star Danny Francesco (Josh Hartnett) as an asset.

Review:

It seems to me that for the last few years, Guy Ritchie has just been making the sort of films that he wants to make – and I think that sense of enjoyment has shined through in his recent work.  I thought 2020’s The Gentlemen was a lot of fun, marking his return to his stylised, gangster-comedy roots, while 2021’s Wrath of Man was an unexpectedly tense and gritty crime thriller with some well-staged action sequences.  Both films benefited from one of Guy Ritchie’s secret weapons – a great cast – and Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre continues that trend.

Jason Statham walks a fine line between the comedy and the action in this film, as Orson Fortune isn’t nearly as overly comical as his character in Spy was.  But although he plays Orson with a straight face, there’s also a knowing smile to Jason Statham’s performance, where it’s clear that he’s well aware of the deliberately ridiculous and clichéd nature of this character.

“…it’s obviously not taking itself too seriously…”

In fact, that description pretty much sums up the entire tone of Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre (and let’s be honest, even the film’s title is intentionally overblown and pretentious).  It’s not an out-and-out parody like Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery or Top Secret!, but it’s also obviously not taking itself too seriously either.  And on the other hand, it’s not a crime drama with blackly comic elements in the way that films like The Gentlemen or Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels were, as there’s never really any sense of tension or jeopardy to any of the film’s action sequences.  Instead, the entire cast play their roles as if they were starring in the latest globe-trotting Bond or Mission: Impossible movie, and they let the ridiculousness of the situation and the plot provide the comedy.

Hugh Grant continues to carve out a niche for himself playing comically over-the-top villains, although his performance as a sleezy arms dealer in this film did feel very similar to the seedy blackmailer that he played in The Gentlemen.  Meanwhile, Josh Hartnett is amusing as the Hollywood movie star who’s blackmailed into helping the spies infiltrate a celebrity-packed party, while Aubrey Plaza gets a decent amount to do as Orson’s new right-hand-woman.

“…it’s just trying to provide a bit of fun…”

It’s always great to see Cary Elwes on the big screen, and here he plays the “long suffering boss” trope to comic perfection.  Relative newcomer (and rapper) Bugzy Malone (who has only acted once before, in The Gentlemen) does well in his role as the new recruit to the team, while long-time Guy Ritchie collaborator Eddie Marsan makes an appearance as the team’s employer in the British government.

It feels meanspirited to be critical of a film that clearly is just trying to provide a bit of fun, and where you can sense that the cast and crew had a laugh making the movie.  In many ways, this is the ultimate 3-star movie...  Is it likely to stay with me long after the credits have rolled?  Probably not.  Did I have a good time watching it?  Yes, I did.  Is it a bad film?  Definitely not.  Would I watch another adventure with these characters?  Almost certainly.