In a mostly forgettable action-comedy, Kate Beckinsale takes anger management to the extreme. Jolt tells an account of Lindy Lewis’ saga that is head-smashing and bone-crunching. Drumroll please; let me introduce you to “Intermittent Explosive Disorder,” said the woman suffering from it. This is a maniacal state that entails aggressive fits of temper; it’s an actual mental problem, not just clever wordplay on IEDs (improvised explosive devices). When provoked, she will snap and break her target down to a bloody pulp. What makes it interesting is how she keeps these urges at bay by giving herself electric shock with a complex gadget. While Jolt has engaging characters but obvious plots as well as slack direction. It never rises beyond being a B-movie with an A-list cast.
Lindy Lewis (Kate Beckinsale) goes on a blind date in Jolt. She flashes back on her troubled youth and tells of how terrible parents led to institutionalization and also tried her military career when she got to this point.Then ,at a restaurant, lindy meets Justin( Jai Courtney), who is even more shy because he is accountant.Lindy wants to explode at the impolite waitress but she shocks herself serene using her control necklace.Surprisingly, justin gets along with lindy.He isn’t weirded out by his body harness when their evening becomes romantic either.
For the first time in her life, Lindy falls in love.She’s really making strides according to Stanley Tucci’s creepy psychiatrist whose sessions have him physically restraining for security reasons.The moment Justin fails to show up for their planned meeting, however, her short-lived happiness evaporates.Two detectives inform her(Bobby Cannavale,Laverne Cox) that Justin was killed.Worse still, due to repeated violent acts committed by Lindy,she becomes one suspect.Love lost by Lindy turns into high-octane anger.Nothing will deter her from finding the murderer of Justin.
The individual performances are enjoyable. Kate Beckinsale has action chops that lend credibility to her role.There is also a scene when she envisions brutal revenge upon every nuisance before jolting herself.Don’t mess with her yoga mat. Some comic barbs from trans actress Laverne Cox are worth a chuckle.Bobby Cannavale plays the good policeman who actually cares about Lindy’s safety.Hollywood veterans make up its core ensemble.However, it falls short in terms of script and direction.
None of these big action scenes hold much interest. But for some reason, the several chases and even final confrontation disappoints till now. Jolt has an uneven flow that hinders pacing in a film that barely runs beyond ninety minutes. Tanya Wexler, director of Hysteria and Buffaloed, spends sufficient time unpacking on what makes Lindy feel how she does but fails to deliver energy in driving martial arts. When Lindy truly lets loose, however, Jolt needed to amp up the voltage.
Kate Beckinsale is always charismatic.In this case, a lesser actress would have appeared foolish.As with the Underworld franchise,she makes trash more than what it really is.Jolt finds its strength as an origin story.The third act sets up Lindy for grander adventures with a cameo twist.So at least there is hope for better sequel-territory depicted by Jolt.This film was produced by Millennium Films together with Busted Shark Productions,Campbell Grobman Films.July 23rd, Jolt will be released exclusively on Amazon Prime Video.
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