Sweet Girl – Film Review

Devoted family man Ray Cooper (Jason Momoa), vows justice against the pharmaceutical company responsible for pulling a potentially life-saving drug from the market just before his wife dies from cancer. But when his search for the truth leads to a deadly encounter that puts Ray and his daughter Rachel (Isabela Merced) in harm’s way, Ray’s mission turns into a quest for vengeance in order to protect the only family he has left.

It’s kind of strange that a movie with Jason Momoa in all his badass glory on the official poster holding an ax is called Sweet Girl, but make no mistake – this movie is not squeaky clean. It’s bloody, vicious, and features lots of blood which is certainly going to be enjoyable at times, but unfortunately, it’s a film that was executed poorly in the grand scheme of things.

One of the biggest signs this movie gives to let us know it’s going to be extremely convoluted is within the first fifteen minutes as we continuously jump between various different points in time, creating a jarring narrative that may not be super confusing but it is super annoying to have to put up with.

Thankfully after those first fifteen minutes are up, the rest of the film does follow the one storyline and it doesn’t cut back to any annoying flashbacks, but sadly the story itself is just not that good mainly because it’s so familiar. What’s up with all these movies and shows telling the story of a jaded, no-nonsense guy teaming up with his daughter (or daughter figure) to go on a dangerous mission?

The Last of Us games do this trope really well and manage to subvert a ton of clichés, but the same thing cannot be said about Sweet Girl. It’s the story of a jaded father who goes on a mission with his young daughter to get some good old-fashioned revenge. One of the weirdest things about the film, though, is how willing the character of Ray Cooper is to just let his daughter go on a life-and-death journey with him.

Courtesy of Netflix

The people Ray are chasing are seriously brutal and will kill anybody or anything that gets in their way, and all it takes is for his daughter Rachel to say “I don’t care, I’m going” for Ray to just cave in and accept it. What kind of father just willingly puts his daughter in so much danger?

Interestingly, the third act does make quite the massive reveal and one that changes the way you see the rest of the movie beforehand. It’s the kind of twist that M. Night Shyamalan would wish he could’ve thought about sooner. Although I was not a fan of the movie at all, I will admit that the twist during the last twenty minutes was bonkers and extremely clever. I wish the same writing wits were on display throughout the previous portions of the film, but sadly, they weren’t.

Simply put, Sweet Girl just feels like the most generic and formulaic action-thriller and has nothing that makes it unique. There are quite literally hundreds of movies exactly like this one and sadly, the film’s screenwriters make little effort to make it stand out amongst the crowded genre.

Jason Momoa is a lot of fun in the role of Ray and whenever he gets some action or shootout scenes, it’s entertaining to watch because Momoa is one of the most badass and exciting actors of our generation. He’s a blast to watch as Aquaman and he’s a blast to watch here as well. And Isabela Merced, who I believe is drastically underrated, gets plenty of great moments here too.

Certain sequences with her truly showcase her incredible acting talents and prove that she is a force to be reckoned with in the industry. As a pair, however, Momoa and Merced have almost zero chemistry together. They’re supposed to be playing father and daughter but when I was watching them on-screen, it just felt as though I were watching two actors instead of their characters.

Sweet Girl is oddly infuriating because it could’ve been a lot more entertaining than it was. The action sequences are fun when they happen but they’re scattered so few and far between. The story is incredibly predictable and simplistic. The only thing the film truly has going for it is the energetic performances from Momoa and Merced, but other than that, Sweet Girl left a sour taste in my mouth.