Citadel International OTT Series Review #PicksAndPiques #filmmoviedocumentaryreview #internationalfilmfestivalcircuit

#PicksAndPiques #filmmoviedocumentaryreview #internationalfilmfestivalcircuit International OTT Series Review #JohnsonThomas @everyone #everyone Title : #Citadel #AmazonPrimeVideo #MoesArt @everyone Cast: #PriyankaChopraJonas #RichardMadden #StanleyTucci #LesleyManville #AshleighCummings #MoiraKelly #RolandMøller #OsyIkhile #CaoilinnSpringall Director: #AnthonyRusso, #JoeRusso Rating: * * 1/2 Runtime: 4 Episodes/ 36-45 mins each #MikeLarocca #AngelaRussoOtstot #ScottNemes #AGBO #DavidWeil #JoshAppelbaum #AndréNemec #JeffPinkner #ScottRosenberg #MidnightRadio #NewtonThomasSigel #PatrickMoran

The first two episodes of this globe-trotting spy thriller series head-lining desi girl Priyanka Chopra Jonas have been pretty much run of the mill. Launched as a big, multi-series spy franchise Citadel is just one of many planned shows set in the same fictional universe, with Italian and Indian spinoffs already in the works. At $300 million it’s second only to Amazon’s Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power in terms of costliest series ever produced. The series has a lot of flash and dash but little in terms of ‘involving content’ to show for it. The idea of an amnesiac man discovering that he’s really a secret agent is not new ( remember Jason Bourne?). The intrigue is hokey and vacuous. Even the representations of good and evil lack weightiness. The makers seem to have some kind-of-a #BulletTrain (the Brad Pitt starrer) fetish. Most of the action in the first two episodes happens in a fast-track train with both the leads showing off their stunt skills to good effect. The action is brutal but there’s really nothing new to it. ‘Citadel’ Executive-produced by the Russo brothers, is colorful, has the latest techno displays to awe you, and twists and turns in every episode that makes you feel disoriented - yet it fails to strike a chord. It’s pretty looking no doubt. The camera work is flashy, the dialogues don’t really cut ice and the editing heaps showiness instead of highlighting real content. The expensive reshoots and heavy edits tell us a sliced-and-diced story that never really gets into a groove. It’s generic, lead stars Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Richard Madden look glamorous together, and the supporting players Stanley Tucci and Lesley Manville lend respectability to a rather lackluster project. Chopra Jonas gets to show off her ass-kicking avatar to great effect but Madden fails to strike a chord with his conflicted screen persona. Citadel lacks tension, there’s no adrenaline rush to be had here and the edginess you expect from a spy thriller is sorely missing. Even the 3rd and 4th episodes fail to rise to the occasion. Bad writing and heavy spending don’t make a series great or engaging!