Cherry

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I've been an advocate for Apple TV+ since I saw Servant. I genuinely believe it's the most underrated streaming service out there, especially in my country. Even though I've only watched one TV show, I've yet to seriously dislike a single film (Wolfwalkers, Palmer, On the Rocks), which only elevated my already high expectations for Cherry. I sincerely appreciate the magnificent, genre-defining work that the Russo Brothers did in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, mainly with the last Avengers flicks, so I'd always be interested in seeing how they handle things outside of the MCU. Cast Tom Holland (The Devil All the Time, Onward) as the protagonist, and you've got yourself one of the most anticipated movies of the first half of 2021.

One of the best attributes of the Russo Brothers' filmmaking style is their incredible capability of tackling an overwhelming amount of distinct storylines and characters without ruining the film's pacing, tone, and narrative structure. "Less is more" is not exactly a guideline followed by these directors, which is far from being an issue in the superhero genre. However, when it comes to a smaller movie like Cherry, the combination of genres and different narratives deeply hurts the overarching story. What starts as a simple, cute love story transitions to a heavy war action-drama and ends with a monotonous, dull, slow-paced plot surrounding drug addiction, PTSD, and bank robberies.

These three storylines have served as individual premises to hundreds of films throughout cinema history. This doesn't mean they can't be developed in a single movie, but Angela Russo-Otstot and Jessica Goldberg's screenplay needed to be better structured. The first half of the film is quite captivating and entertaining, to say the least. Cherry (Tom Holland) and Emily (Ciara Bravo) are two compelling characters who get emotionally attached naturally, making...

Tom Holland and Joe and Anthony Russo have teamed up again but this time on a project which is about as far away from the Marvel universe as possible. Based on the book Nico Walker; “Cherry” is a compelling tale told in segments that depict a different style and phase of the main character’s life.

Holland stars as a young man who is trying to find a direction in his life. He meets a young girl named Emily (Ciara Bravo), and soon begins a relationship with her. This phase of the film plays out as a Young Romance film and the audience is given a good look at their world.

When Emily decides to move to Montreal to go to school and escape the issues she has’ Cherry goes into a downward spiral and enlists in the Army as a way to escape his pain and to try to find direction.

The film takes a dramatic turn at this point as Emily and Cherry reunite and marries but he is facing his pending military service which will split the couple. The film then pivots and becomes a war movie as we see Cherry go through Basic Training and then is deployed to Afghanistan as a medic. The horrors he experiences during his two years in the service traumatize him and he returns home to Emily with a severe case of PTSD which complicates their life and relationship.

The film then pivots again to show a descent into depression and drug addiction as Cherry and Emily fall deeply into the spell of drugs which causes Cherry to become more and more desperate to fund their habit which soon includes bank robbery.

While the film is deeply dark and depressing; there is a thread of hope throughout the film as despite their numerous issues; the bond between Emily and Cherry remains despite challenges well beyond what any normal relationship faces.

The honest and brutal nature of the story is amplified by the fact that this is a true story based on the life of Nico Walker. There have been films that depict the challenges facing Vets such as “The Deer Hunter” “Coming Home”, and “Born on the...

A man’s journey that starts during his years as a college student and leads to a stint as an Army medic in Iraq, a suffering drug addict, and eventually an armed robber is told in “Cherry,” a film by the Russo brothers. Based on Nico Walker’s 2018 novel of the same name, this semi-autobiographical story is like an encyclopedia of bad decisions that focuses too heavily on portraying another American tale of opioid abuse. It’s a shame because this atypical coming-of-age movie could’ve been something so much better.

Cherry’s (Tom Holland) life seems normal enough. He’s an average guy working average jobs and doing well enough in school. He’s become smitten with beautiful co-ed Emily (Ciara Bravo), and it’s soon clear that she’s “the one.” After a breakup leaves him in agony, Cherry hastily decides to drop out of college and enlists in the Army, which brings Emily back into his life. The two get married before he’s sent off to basic training, and eventually Cherry is pushed into combat in the Middle East. While serving in the medical unit during the war, he sees the horrors of humanity first-hand, and comes home a changed man. Unable to function and with his marriage crumbling, he begins popping Oxycodone. This turns into an addiction spiral that eventually leads to a debilitating heroin habit that leaves him no choice but to start robbing banks for drug money.

It’s an interesting (if sad) story, but it’s not well told. Directors Anthony Russo and Joe Russo throw in too many gimmicky devices that are all over the place, creating a chaotic potpourri of annoyance and exasperation. Not only are many of the scenes scored with opera and the lead character breaks the fourth wall to directly address the audience, but the whole vibe of the movie is so disorderly that it makes me wonder if the Russos refused to make any edits to the hurricane of ideas in their heads. It’s as if they stuck anything and everything that came to mind into one two hour feature, and it’s like a...