1 out of 5 stars
Jason Momoa grabbed the world's attention in Game of Thrones as Khal Drogo. He then solidified his place in cinema history with his punk interpretation of Aquaman. Since these groundbreaking career choices, most of his roles have relied on his unique look and guttural vocal qualities. This seems to be the case with Netflix’s Sweet Girl, where he is set to portray a vengeful man who is grieving and angry.
As Ray Cooper, the tattooed hulk becomes a salt-of-the-earth blue-collar worker who adores his wife and daughter while they make their way in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. When Amanda Cooper (Adria Arjona) begins to show signs of cancer, her husband does all to get her the best care they can afford. Despite her dire prognosis, the family gets a lifeline as it has been announced that a new drug has come onto the market that may be the answer to their prayers. Until it is revealed that the maker of the drug, BioPrime, will inexplicably pull it off the market, a decision that leads to Amanda’s passing away.
As Ray deals with his grief, he does all that he can to invest in the life of his teenage daughter, Rachel (Isabela Merced). They train at the local martial arts gym and come to rely on one another for everything. When one night they watch drug company’s CEO Simon Keeley (Justin Bartha) on the news as he tries to justify the company’s decision to pull the life-saving medicine from the market. As it is a talk show format, Ray manages to call into the news program and in a fit of rage, he threatens the pharmaceutical executive’s life. This action leads an investigative reporter to contact the widower to discuss how they could partner on an article that will expose BioPrime and other parties for nefarious activities. Yet, when they attempt to meet, the Coopers' lives turn upside down and the pair find themselves on the run from authorities and a hired killer.
First-time director Brian Andrew Mendoza has partnered with Momoa on a multitude of previous projects as a producer. Based on their past credits, they show that their priority for the actor is to capitalise on his formidable on-screen presence and hope this keeps audiences from noticing the less than robust writing. Every aspect of this project is a series of action sequences held together by a paper-thin screenplay that becomes less believable as things progress. This bizarre series of events contains plot holes that a semi-truck could drive through until the climax occurs and then it all becomes clearer with the twist. Oh that twist. No spoilers, but what were they thinking?
They try to capitalise on up-and-coming Isabela Merced (Instant Family) and her rising star. As she tries to break free from her Dora the Explorer label, she does her best with what she was given. This young actress becomes the conscience in this fateful cross-country journey and initially is relegated to being dragged along by Momoa. Until things go wholly pear-shaped and they attempt to make her into the newest version of Jason Bourne. This discombobulating turn may some viewers cheer, while it will lead the majority to groan in disbelief. An act that took this from being one of the most frustrating films of the year to making it almost impossible to watch it through until the conclusion. Sweet Girl could have been a potential franchise launch, but the hope is that they let this one dissolve into streaming obscurity.
Reel Dialogue: Why do we have to suffer?
This film is loaded with suffering upon suffering. Which may lead many to ask why we all have to go through difficult times.
It might be a surprise to many, but Christianity is the only worldview which has an actual answer to the problem of evil and suffering. Christians can attest to the fact that they serve a God who lived as a man on this earth and experienced temptation, torture, hunger, thirst, hatred and death. Due to the work of Jesus on the cross, the justice of God is manifested in his son. The cross is a means of symbolising how much God cares about humanity's suffering. A more profound conclusion is that we may never know the specific reason for our suffering, but that we can identify the God who understands the rationale behind the pain.
“If only there were someone to arbitrate between us, to lay his hand upon us both, someone to remove God’s rod from me, so that his terror would frighten me no more. Then I would speak up without fear of him, but as it now stands with me, I cannot” - Job 9:33
