Operation Fortune -- a review

Director Guy Ritchie is making a lot of movies, lately. Ritchie will make a big-league film--like Aladdin, for Disney--and then go off and make a mid-budget movie immediately afterward. And this is a good thing. Because the more Guy Ritchie films, the merrier. His latest, Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre, stars Jason Statham as Orson Fortune, a cool, suave, James Bond-type agent who does special missions for the British government. Cary Elwes plays Nathan, his long suffering handler, who constantly has to explain Fortune’s maverick antics to Knighton, their tedious boss at MI6 (well-played by long-time Ritchie collaborator Eddie Marsan).

Fortune is called upon once more when an experimental weapon known only as “the Handle” has been stolen from a secret lab. Tracking the theft to international arms dealer Greg Simmonds (Hugh Grant, who seems to be having a lot of fun here), Fortune must stop Simmonds before he can sell the Handle to a buyer. Fortune is teamed up with JJ (Bugzy Malone), whom he’s worked with before, and computer expert Sarah (Aubrey Plaza), whom he hasn’t. And while she’s very good at her job, Sarah’s laid-back attitude is hard for Fortune to get used to.

Josh Hartnett is also superb as a hapless Hollywood actor whom the team recruits into their scheme. The result is a breezy, fun action-comedy that plays like a slightly more realistic and humorous take on the Mission Impossible films. Jason Statham brings his usual tough-guy charm to bear, and it works very well. Aubrey Plaza is another highlight; she’s often hysterically funny as the droll, dry-witted Sarah, who almost steals the movie. Although it’s comedic, the film treats its threats seriously, with the humor coming from the characters’ reactions to the situations.

Despite its clunky title, Operation Fortune winds up being a fun, free-wheeling movie that’s genuinely funny. It was originally made back in early 2021, and was supposed to be released a lot sooner, but was held back for various reasons, before seeing a release in early 2023. Sadly, it didn’t make much money at the box office. That’s a shame, because I would really love seeing another fun spy adventure with the cool Fortune, and the plucky Sarah, along with the rest of their crew. --SF

Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre is out on streaming and is also on physical media.

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