Cherry is a 2021 crime drama about an army medic suffering from PTSD who becomes a serial bank robber after an addiction to drugs puts him in debt.
Directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo (Avengers: Endgame; Avengers: Infinity War; Captain America: Civil War) from a screenplay co-written by Angela Russo-Otstot and Jessica Goldberg, based on the novel by Nico Walker.
The movie stars Tom Holland (Chaos Walking; The Devil All of the Time; Spider-Man: No Way Home; Spider-Man: Far From Home), Ciara Bravo (Pure), Thomas Lennon (Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich; Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders; Hell Baby), Kelli Berglund (Ghost in the Graveyard), Bill Skarsgård (The Devil All of the Time; Villains; IT and IT: Chapter Two), Jeff Wahlberg (Dora and the Lost City of Gold), Jack Reynor (Midsommar) and Michael Gandolfini (The Many Saints of Newark).
Reviews:
” …it’s intriguing and refreshing to see directors come from the studio system and still choose risks over comfort. Or, as someone once put it: whatever it takes. There’s much to chew on in Cherry, and not all of it works. But a never-better performance from Tom Holland, and some bold directorial choices, make it a mostly compelling watch.” Empire
“As the story pings and ricochets through the last increasingly unhinged hour of its 140-minute run time, the chaos feels like a fitting parallel, maybe, for its protagonist’s state of mind. For all the frenzied action of the final scenes though, there’s an airless, overwrought sense of diminishing returns; and that’s a comedown we’ve seen too many times before.” Entertainment Weekly
” …the Russos are obviously ambitious in their treatment, cramming what amounts to half-a-dozen features into this nearly 2.5-hour film. Overt stylization does not stifle a compassionate performance by Holland and breakthrough from Bravo, but Cherry is seemingly at war with itself, never able to synthesize form and content in a meaningful way.” The Film Stage
“It wouldn’t be fair to say that Cherry misses its marks with the goal of every chapter, but it all lands with little effectiveness and the disappointing sensation that all the Russo brothers are capable of doing here is the bare minimum emotionally. As filmmakers, the Russos also seem to be aware of this, masking storytelling failures with over-stylized presentation seemingly determined to ape off anyone and everything.” Flickering Myth
“Rare moments of intimacy are smothered in artifice. Walker’s story no doubt is grounded in a very real milieu that reflects the grim existence of countless Americans returning from active duty to a country blighted by economic downturn, shrinking opportunity and substance abuse. But the only reality Cherry reflects with numbing insistence is that of co-directors getting high on their own high style.” The Hollywood Reporter
“The film never quite sells us on Cherry’s stony numbness, and things only get worse when his polite sociopathy collides with the PTSD he brings home from the war in a histrionic way that muddles them both […] Cherry doesn’t have any decent answers for him; it can only smother him under the crushing weight of style over substance.” IndieWire
“Cherry is a hard-hitting and emotionally charged insight into how war heroes have been treated in America. Featuring two outstanding lead turns, the Russo brothers explore the psychological battles soldiers must face every day as they attempt to navigate the challenges that reintegrating into society brings. Not an easy watch, but an enthralling one.” The Movie Waffler
“Inevitably, with such a grab bag of cinematic tricks on display, one or two will hold your attention through sheer novelty. Mostly, though, they contribute to a film that is a simultaneously scattered and dull two hours, even as it continues wheeling out new stylistic devices until the finale’s side-scrolling prison montage […] Cherry is a bomb.” Paste
“Cherry is a film that’s too long, too tonally-confused when it wants to be weighty, and too self-serious when it wants to be entertaining. At least one of those qualities can be worked through in something as big and crazy as the MCU, but when you’re building a realistic world to tell a story of addiction and desperation, it just won’t work.” Sonic Cinema
“The film is stylish and tragic, making for an intriguing narrative. However, an overly convenient, somewhat rushed/unearned ending holds the film back from really achieving true greatness, and proves that while they’re strong directors, the Russos still have a bit of growth to achieve before they can go for gold.” Spoiler Free Reviews
“Tom Holland isn’t a bad actor, and in Cherry, he proves his skill set. He touches an array of dissolute looks and moods. Yet there’s no real danger to him […] There’s hardly a moment in Cherry that’s believable, but the film’s true crime is that there’s hardly a moment in it that’s enjoyable either. The only emotion the movie conveys is being full of itself.” Variety
Scroll down for several YouTube reviews
Release:
Cherry is set for a theatrical release on February 26th 2021 and will be available on Apple TV on March 12th.
Trailer:
YouTube reviews:
Critics’ aggregated rating:
