The 355
Dir: Simon Kinberg
Cast: Jessica Chastain, Penélope Cruz, Fan Bingbing, Diane Kruge
Rating: 3/5

It’s ‘Charlie’s Angels’ with an International intelligence veneer and Bond-like worldview. Producer and one of the luminous leads, Jessica Chastain, hopes to cash in on the interest generated by the proposed next-in-line, franchise governed, Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman produced Ian Fleming’s fiction inspired, wildly speculated, female Bond film. So we have 5 women getting together to save the world from devastation that could well be worse than World War II.

The 355 derives its name from a female spy who apparently did duty during the American Revolution, but whose true identity has since been lost to history. This fact is explained in a throwaway line during the final scene of the film. Director Simon Kinberg (Dark Phoenix) helms this Jessica Chastain, Penélope Cruz, Fan Bingbing, Diane Kruger, Lupita Nyong’o, led cross-continent spy thriller that gives the lead players the opportunity and skills to thrive in an espionage dominated action-thriller set-up.