Ava (2020 Film)
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''Ava'' is a 2020 American
action thriller The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...
film directed by Tate Taylor written by
Matthew Newton Matthew Joseph Newton (born 22 January 1977) is an Australian actor, writer, and director, and son of Australian TV personalities Bert and Patti Newton. He made his motion picture debut in 2000 in the Australian film ‘ Looking For Alibrand ...
and produced by Chastain's production company, Freckle Films. The film stars
Jessica Chastain Jessica Michelle Chastain (born March 24, 1977) is an American actress and producer. Known for primarily starring in projects with Feminism, feminist themes, she has received List of awards and nominations received by Jessica Chastain, various ...
,
John Malkovich John Gavin Malkovich (born December 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and ...
,
Common Common may refer to: As an Irish surname, it is anglicised from Irish Gaelic surname Ó Comáin. Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Com ...
,
Geena Davis Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis (born January 21, 1956) is an American actor. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. Davis made her acting debut in the satirical romantic comedy ''Toots ...
,
Colin Farrell Colin James Farrell (; born 31 May 1976) is an Irish actor. A Leading actor, leading man in blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters and independent films since the 2000s, he has received various List of awards and nominations received by Col ...
,
Ioan Gruffudd Ioan Gruffudd (; ; born 6 October 1973) is a Welsh actor. He is known for his roles in film and television series in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia. Gruffudd became known for his portrayal of Harold Lowe in ''Titanic'' ( ...
and
Joan Chen Joan Chen (simplified Chinese; 陈冲; born April 26, 1961) is an American actress and film director. She made her film debut in the Chinese film ''Youth'' (1977) before starring in the film (1979). She came to the attention of American audien ...
. ''Ava'' premiered in
Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
on June 2, 2020, and in the United States through
DirecTV Cinema DirecTV Cinema (previously known as Direct Ticket, Blockbuster Ticket, Blockbuster Pay-Per-View Movies, and DirecTV Pay-Per-View) is DirecTV's video on demand and pay-per-view platform for film content. Films are released as is done on other pay- ...
on August 27, 2020, followed by a limited theatrical and
video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos, television shows and films Digital distribution, digitally on request. These multimedia are accessed without a traditional video playback device and a typica ...
release on September 25, 2020, by
Vertical Entertainment Vertical (formerly Vertical Entertainment) is an American independent film distribution company founded by producers Rich Goldberg and Mitch Budin in 2012. Vertical releases films across all mediums, including theatrical, video on demand, physica ...
. The film received generally negative reviews, but Chastain's performance received some praise.


Plot

Ava Faulkner is a recovering addict and former soldier turned assassin. In France, she kidnaps her new target, an English businessman. Before she kills him, she questions him on why someone wants him dead. Unbeknownst to her, another woman electronically eavesdrops on the conversation. Afterwards, Ava flies to Boston where she visits with her estranged sister Judy and her mother Bobbi who is hospitalized for
angina Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of parti ...
pain. Ava has not seen them in eight years. Ava's handler and former Army superior, Duke, sends her to Saudi Arabia to kill a German general. Ava lures the general into a trap and injects him with a poison to make it appear he died of a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
. Having blown her cover due to a mispronunciation of a man in her backstory, she is interrupted by the general's security guards. A gunfight ensues, leaving all the men dead. Ava escapes and travels to
Barneville-Carteret Barneville-Carteret () is a Communes of France, commune in the Manche Departments of France, department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy Regions of France, region of north-western France. For many years it has been a popular sea ...
where Duke apologizes for the botched operation, insisting that the bad intel was a simple mistake. He gives her time off to decompress and she returns to Boston and meets Michael, her former fiancé who is now in a relationship with her sister Judy. In
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
, Duke meets with his superior, Simon. Simon's daughter Camille is the woman who had earlier eavesdropped on Ava's hit. Simon believes Ava is a liability and that her questioning of targets demonstrates insufficient commitment to their operation. After Duke leaves, Simon reaffirms the hit on Ava. She kills her attacker and then confronts Duke who insists that it was a random attack by a drug addict. That night, Ava goes to dinner with Judy and Michael (as recommended by Ava's mother to reconcile and patch up their differences), but their conversation does not go well. Judy abruptly leaves the table when witty banter between Ava and Michael ensues. Michael and Ava are left to chat for a while until Michael leaves as well, still visibly upset at Ava for being gone the past 8 years with no contact. At 5 o'clock in the morning, Ava is startled awake by knocking at her hotel door. It's Judy telling her Michael has gone missing. Realizing he has started gambling again, Ava denies knowing where he is to Judy. The next scene shows Ava going to rescue him from a
gambling den Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three elem ...
run by a woman, named Toni, to whom Michael is indebted for over $80,000. A fight ensues with Toni's guards after Ava tries to leave with Michael. Ava asks Toni to give her 36 hours to clear Michael's debt and Toni, seeing her guards injured on the floor, begrudgingly agrees. Duke revisits Simon and reveals he knew Ava was set up. A fight ensues between the two men, resulting in Simon killing Duke. He sends a video of Duke's death to Ava. A heartbroken Ava goes to Judy's house, where she invites Michael to run away with her but he declines, revealing that Judy is pregnant. Ava heads to Toni's den where she kills some of her men before giving Toni a bag of money to pay off Michael's debt. Ava starts to strangle Toni, and is about to break her neck, but then changes her mind, letting her live while warning her to stay away from Michael for good. Back at her hotel, Ava is attacked by Simon. They fight, with both sustaining serious injuries. Exhausted, Simon flees when the fire alarm goes off, warning Ava that he will kill her if he sees her again. Ava pursues Simon, cornering and killing him under the
Zakim Bridge The Leonard P. Zakim () Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge (also known as "The Zakim") is a cable-stayed bridge completed in 2003 across the Charles River in Boston, Massachusetts. It is a replacement for the Charlestown High Bridge, an older truss b ...
. Ava goes to her sister's house, warning Judy to leave the country and giving her the number and code to an offshore bank account filled with Ava's earnings. Before she leaves, Michael gives her a letter from Duke, who says that he is happy with how his life turned out. As she walks down the street, Ava is stalked by Simon's daughter, Camille.


Cast


Production

In August 2018, the production drew criticism due to
Matthew Newton Matthew Joseph Newton (born 22 January 1977) is an Australian actor, writer, and director, and son of Australian TV personalities Bert and Patti Newton. He made his motion picture debut in 2000 in the Australian film ‘ Looking For Alibrand ...
, who at the time was set to direct, having been accused of multiple allegations of assault and domestic violence. In addition to the accusations, he had also pleaded guilty to assaulting
Brooke Satchwell Brooke Kerith Satchwell is an Australian actress and former model. She is known for playing Anne Wilkinson in the soap opera ''Neighbours'' from 1995 until 2000. She won the Logie Award for Most Popular New Talent in 1998. Since leaving ''Neigh ...
, his then girlfriend.
Jessica Chastain Jessica Michelle Chastain (born March 24, 1977) is an American actress and producer. Known for primarily starring in projects with Feminism, feminist themes, she has received List of awards and nominations received by Jessica Chastain, various ...
, a vocal advocate for the
MeToo movement #MeToo is a social movement and Consciousness raising, awareness campaign against sexual abuse, sexual harassment and rape culture, in which women publicize their experiences of sexual abuse or sexual harassment. The phrase "Me Too" was init ...
, was accused of hypocrisy for working with Newton. Newton would ultimately step down from directing the film, with Tate Taylor hired to replace him. Newton is credited as the film's writer. In September 2018,
Colin Farrell Colin James Farrell (; born 31 May 1976) is an Irish actor. A Leading actor, leading man in blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters and independent films since the 2000s, he has received various List of awards and nominations received by Col ...
,
Common Common may refer to: As an Irish surname, it is anglicised from Irish Gaelic surname Ó Comáin. Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Com ...
, and
John Malkovich John Gavin Malkovich (born December 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and ...
joined the cast of the film, then still titled ''Eve''. In October 2018, Christopher Domig,
Diana Silvers Diana Silvers (born November 3, 1997) is an American actress and model, best known for playing Erin Naird in the comedy series ''Space Force'' (2020–2022). Early life Silvers was born in Los Angeles on November 3, 1997. Her mother is Swis ...
,
Geena Davis Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis (born January 21, 1956) is an American actor. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. Davis made her acting debut in the satirical romantic comedy ''Toots ...
,
Joan Chen Joan Chen (simplified Chinese; 陈冲; born April 26, 1961) is an American actress and film director. She made her film debut in the Chinese film ''Youth'' (1977) before starring in the film (1979). She came to the attention of American audien ...
, and
Jess Weixler Jessica Weixler (born June 8, 1981) is an American actress. She played Dawn O'Keefe in the comedy horror film ''Teeth'' and Jordan in the comedy '' The Big Bad Swim'' and played the role of defense lawyer for Lyle Menendez in the Netflix series ...
joined the cast of the film. In November 2019, it was announced the film had been re-titled ''Ava''.


Filming

Principal photography began on September 24, 2018, in Boston, and continued in Boston,
Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...
, and
Weston Weston may refer to: Places Australia * Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Weston, New South Wales * Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra * Weston Park, Canberra, a park Canada * Weston, Nova Scotia * W ...
, Massachusetts, in the United States. Filming locations included Saint Joseph's Abbey, The Schrafft Center, Wingaersheek Beach,
Worcester Regional Airport Worcester Regional Airport is three miles (5 km) west of Worcester, in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The main property lies within municipalities of Worcester and Leicester, with supporting facilities in Paxton. Once ...
,
Boston Public Market The Boston Public Market is an indoor Market (place), public market that opened in July 2015 in downtown Boston, adjacent to the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway. The market houses more than 28 year-round vendor stalls, and is open seven days a ...
and
Boston Common The Boston Common is a public park in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest city park in the United States. Boston Common consists of of land bounded by five major Boston streets: Tremont Street, Park Street, Beacon Street, Charl ...
.


Release

The film was released in Hungary on July 2, 2020. It was released in the United States through
DirecTV Cinema DirecTV Cinema (previously known as Direct Ticket, Blockbuster Ticket, Blockbuster Pay-Per-View Movies, and DirecTV Pay-Per-View) is DirecTV's video on demand and pay-per-view platform for film content. Films are released as is done on other pay- ...
on August 27, 2020, followed by
video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos, television shows and films Digital distribution, digitally on request. These multimedia are accessed without a traditional video playback device and a typica ...
on September 25, 2020, by
Vertical Entertainment Vertical (formerly Vertical Entertainment) is an American independent film distribution company founded by producers Rich Goldberg and Mitch Budin in 2012. Vertical releases films across all mediums, including theatrical, video on demand, physica ...
. It received a DVD and Blu-ray release in Australia on September 2, 2020, by
Madman Entertainment Madman Entertainment Pty. Ltd., also known as Madman Films, stylized as MADMAN, is an Australian film and television production, distribution, entertainment, and rights management company headquartered in East Melbourne, Victoria, specialising ...
. It began streaming on
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
on December 6, 2020. It was the third most-watched film on the site on its first day of release and finished first in its second day. It went on to become the top-streamed film over its first weekend.


Reception


Box office and VOD

In
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, the film made $31,820 from 59 theaters in its opening weekend, finishing first at the box office. The film grossed a total of $3.3 million worldwide. In its debut weekend in the U.S., ''Ava'' was the most rented film on
Apple TV Apple TV is a digital media player and a microconsole developed and marketed by Apple. It is a small piece of networking hardware that sends received media data such as video and audio to a TV or external display. Its media services include ...
and
Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store, Play Store, or sometimes the Android Store (and was formerly Android Market), is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certifie ...
, and second on
FandangoNow Fandango at Home (formerly known as Vudu) is an American digital video store and streaming service owned by Fandango Media, a joint-venture between NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery. The company offers transactional video on demand renta ...
. In its second weekend the film topped Apple TV, Google Play, and
Spectrum A spectrum (: spectra or spectrums) is a set of related ideas, objects, or properties whose features overlap such that they blend to form a continuum. The word ''spectrum'' was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of co ...
, and remained second at FandangoNow. '' IndieWire'' described the performance of ''Ava'' as "the best showing for a non-premium title in the six months we’ve covered weekly VOD performance."


Critical response

On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, the film holds an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critics consensus reads, "''Ava'' seems to have all the components of an entertaining spy thriller, but not even this spectacular cast is enough to salvage the dull, clichéd story they're given to work with." On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 39 out of 100, based on nine critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews. Guy Lodge of ''
Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' wrote that "the film provides an adequate showcase for its producer-star's unexpected prowess as an action hero — yet Matthew Newton's skimpy, dial-a-cliché script makes the whole enterprise feel more like a mid-range series pilot than a major star vehicle." Writing for ''
The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' Boyd van Hoeij said that "Chastain is utterly convincing in another tough-as-nails role. If audiences stick with the movie, it's largely thanks to her movie-star charisma, which almost compensates for the increasingly ridiculous plot. Malkovich and Farrell seem to understand they are A-list talent in B-movie roles, and relish the opportunity."


References


External links

* {{Tate Taylor 2020 films 2020 action drama films 2020 action thriller films 2020 crime drama films 2020 crime thriller films 2020s American films 2020s English-language films American action drama films American action thriller films American crime drama films American crime thriller films Films about contract killing Films directed by Tate Taylor Films produced by Dominic Rustam Films produced by Jessica Chastain Films produced by Kelly Carmichael Films produced by Nicolas Chartier Films scored by Bear McCreary Films set in Boston Films set in British Columbia Films set in Normandy Films set in Saudi Arabia Films shot in Boston Films with screenplays by Matthew Newton Girls with guns films Voltage Pictures films English-language crime drama films English-language crime thriller films English-language action drama films English-language action thriller films