The Wasteland Reviewer

Shadow Force (2025) Written Review

What is there to do with the action thriller genre? We have seen it all and so many different filmmakers have taken their shot with this genre while mixing in all types of stories including espionage and black ops. Joe Carnahan, who has an interesting filmography with real winners like The Grey and Cop Shop, is the latest who pulls back the curtain to expose government secrets and shadows with his film Shadow Force. You get two former team members who are estranged and both doing what they think is right for their five-year-old child. But when their former boss finds them, he pulls them back into the shadows. Let’s just say…there are plenty of bodies as evidence.

 Does Carnahan deliver a compelling crime thriller like her most recent outings? Not quite. The tone of this film is a little hard to wrap your head around. The film takes this scenario quite seriously, but Carnahan pushes so much humor into the film and there are quite a few places that it feels awkward. One of the most consistent awkward elements is the film’s antagonist, Jack Cinder, whose lines feel so forced and unfunny (no matter how cool and menacing Mark Strong approaches it). The film also struggles with its pacing. The early moments of the film feel a bit like tonal whiplash as you swing from the intense spy moments of Kerry Washington’s character then shifting to the more wholesome elements of Omar Sy with their child. But at least the first act moves. The second act screeches to a halt and becomes quite boring at times. A fun (yet drawn out) finale feels like a tad too late to salvage the ride. 

Does the script that Carnahan co-wrote (with Leon Chills) deliver? Shadow Force unfortunately feels quite derivative and overly familiar. The main highlight of the writing is manifested by some clever directing choices. Sy’s character has hearing aids and when he turns them down, the film has a different and more unique feel to it. The dynamic between father and son (Sy and Jahleel Kamara) is the strongest element of the film. Their back and forth is charming and endearing. There are a few characters who do get some great dialogue to work with including Da’Vine Joy Randolph’s Auntie. But the story turns into a bloated and messy experience with too many threads and characters to process. There is a whole team of assassins that Cinder brings together to get our protagonists but not even one of them has any bit of personality. They just end up being a series of cannon fodders. There are some twists and turns in the character department, but they can be seen a mile away. The climax would have been a fun and exciting experience…if they could have just tightened it up and avoided some fourth act shenanigans. 

Does the cast do the film any favors at least? Sy is charismatic and empathetic, and you really feel for his character and his drive to protect his son. Kamara offers up a fun and endearing performance and he has great chemistry with Sy. Washington must play a more strait-laced and tough character but really stands out when her child’s life is on the line (great emotion) and when she gets moments to banter with Sy. Strong is a strong actor and does his best with some terrible material but the performance is just lacking. Randolph is a shining star with all the best lines and just a presence that pops on screen. There are plenty of other actors thrown in there (including Method Man) but they just get wasted and under-utilized. The fantastic central duo can only do so much with limited material to work with. 

Does Shadow Force deliver an entertaining enough experience to enjoy in the theater? Outside of the bigger names in the cast, this film feels a bit too much like a forgettable and passable VOD action thriller. Carnahan has done much better and only a few fleeting moments highlight what he is capable of. There are only a few elements in the film that stand out as well. At least Sy and Washington are strong and make the experience go down easier.