Starring: Tom Holland, Ciara Bravo, Jack Reynor
Directed: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Released: 2021
Genre: Drama/Crime
Rating: 18
Tom Hollands latest project, shows that he is a lot more than just your friendly neighbour hood Spiderman. In this film we follow our titular character Cherry played by Holland as he meets his love in college, drops out and becomes an army medic in Iraq, once returning home he struggles with PTSD and turns to drugs and a life of crime to fuel his addition.
Theres a reason this film is rated an 18, it has some very hard hitting scenes showing the reality of war and how PTSD can impact people, as well as how easily people can become dependant on substances and become internally different people. These are very sensitive and difficult subjects and I feel the Russo Brothers did an excellent job in portraying both in the correct light.
This film has some of the best cinematography I’ve seen for a long time, one shot that really sticks out to me is the final one, where we are essentially watching the downfall of our protagonist, with the operatic style music in the background, and the barren streets around him it really grabs your attention and has you hanging on until the very last second
Both Tom Holland and Ciara Bravo do brilliant jobs in portraying such broken and desperate characters. I feel they play the roles brilliantly showing how someone life can spiral out from underneath them when they feel like they have no where else to turn. There are some incredibly raw and difficult scenes throughout that they both conquered and brilliantly made their own.
I also like how they broke the film up into parts, just as it would be similar to chapters in the book and they had Cherry narrating and at some points talking directly to the camera again keeping in the elements of the book.
I would definitely recommend this film if you haven’t already seen it. Available on Apple TV right now.
Cinema & Chapters by Peggy 