Prima Ballerina Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) is forced to become a Russian operative known as a Sparrow when life’s quirks result in her being unable to pay for her mother’s care. Her first mission is to get close to CIA agent Nate Nash (Joel Edgerton) who may have a mole inside the Russian secret service.

Teaming up again with Hunger Games Director Francis Lawrence Red Sparrow has given Jennifer Lawrence a film that sounds like it could be Marvel’s origin story for Black Widow. Luckily for anyone with superhero fatigue this is far from that type of film and is much more of a slow burning espionage thriller where you are never sure who to trust and what is real.

Taking its time to establish its characters and their motives Red Sparrow is promising all the way up until it has to show its hand. All the time that we are constantly second guessing everyone’s motives the film is gripping but somehow everything dissipates rapidly with an unsatisfactory reveal in the closing ten minutes. Lawrence and Edgerton carry the film well and are ably supported by the likes of Matthias Schoenaerts, Jeremy Irons and Charlotte Rampling. (Not a Russian amongst them of course but my ears failed to pick up anything too horrible in the accent department). The violence on show is short, sharp and effective as well.

Effective and entertaining but deserved a better denouement.