Netflix’s latest original action blockbuster, Heart of Stone, boasts all the potential for the service to have its own female-led James Bond/Mission Impossible equivalent, but mostly misses the mark.

The film follows Rachel Stone (Gal Gadot) – a talented agent of a secretive organization known as The Charter who is working undercover in MI6. Although she isn’t seen as capable in the field by her MI6 counterparts, Rachel is highly skilled in combat and is aided by an AI program called The Heart that’ll guide Rachel towards the best odds of success in her missions. However, after Rachel’s latest mission takes a bad turn and she discovers that one of her MI6 allies is a double agent with their own agenda, she finds that The Heart could fall into the wrong hands. With Rachel now only able to rely on herself, she goes on a globe-trotting mission to save The Charter and the world from this destructive force.

Right in its early moments and opening credits, Heart of Stone tries to establish itself with the same scale and vibes of blockbuster spy thrillers. The action, humor, and stylistic opening credits all feel reminiscent of franchises like James Bond and Mission Impossible but have a more modern tech atmosphere that comes from The Heart. There is something kind of cool and unique about how The Heart essentially controls Rachel’s mission and assists her in tough spots. Its abilities – which include creating a path for her to follow through digital lines, showing where enemies are around her, and giving her probability odds that’ll lead to her succeeding – can be very game-changing and visually compelling. The introduction of The Heart shows it to be a powerful and versatile tool – which is why it’s not surprising that others are looking to have the AI under their control.

Unfortunately, the film struggles to ever leave its own distinct impression and often finds itself in the shadows of bigger and better films like it – especially with its familiar focus on AI. The whole idea of films focusing on AI as either a McGuffin or the main bad guy has already become tiresome and overused. Heart of Stone does try to differentiate itself a bit in how The Charter depends on The Heart and some of the conversations and lessons learnt by Rachel about the dangers of over relying on The Heart. However, it’s not enough to add something interesting or totally new to the growing conversation around AI. So, it ends up being just another film trying to cash in on a current trend without saying anything we don’t already know.

Even in terms of the story itself, Heart of Stone comes off woefully generic. Outside of the scene of Rachel being betrayed that features some swift brutality that creates genuine intrigue in what’s happening, there isn’t much memorable or engaging about the film. The story never goes in a direction that’s all that shocking and often over-extends itself. The pacing becomes totally sluggish after a while and the story never feels like it’s arriving at its conclusion at a reasonable time. A lot of the lines and characters feel like stock depictions or writing from the genre. The one-liners rarely feel all that clever and conversations between characters feel recycled from other films. Even worse is that the performances rarely shine and despite the cast being filled with tons of talent, no one seems overly invested in the film.

Gadot gives an overly familiar performance with little energy and it’s so unremarkable compared to other performances she’s had. Jamie Dornan is a great addition to the cast and can be a fun unexpected treat but come off like a typical nefarious force with little intrigue. As for everyone else, they either fall into one of two buckets – comedic characters meant to get a laugh out of viewers from time to time or emotional support characters meant to impact Rachel’s arc. Regardless, both kinds of characters tend to fall flat, and no performance ever elevates what’s happening on-screen or holds your attention.

Sadly, Heart of Stone is a film that constantly feels like it’s also trying to impress viewers with its scale and action, but never presents anything worth talking about. While it is cool to see Netflix give this film a big enough budget to have some interesting settings and visuals, it’s still not enough to leave a big mark. Overall, the fighting and action sequences feel pretty standard and have a tame feel to them that isn’t enticing. Not to mention, the egregious cameos the film has don’t feel necessary and come off like a weak flex – especially since the performances aren’t all that noteworthy. Even the world-building the film does – while admirable – isn’t all that compelling and is too basic to offer enough depth to make viewers be immersed into this world. 

Heart of Stone is another instance of Netflix trying their hardest to deliver a big budget action block in your home, but unfortunately this one falls flat. There are some aspects of the film that do shine and show some good potential, but it’s never able to reach anywhere meaningful – which is a shame given the scale and talent it has. For a film that could’ve and should’ve been more for Netflix subscribers, Heart of Stone is a disappointing and ultimately forgetful watch.

Watch the Trailer Here: