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New action movie The Bluff, starring Priyanka Chopra Jonas and The Boys' Karl Urban, has been called "charmingly old-fashioned" and "a rollicking good time" in its first reviews. Though not everyone is willing to let its "paint-by-numbers script" slide...
Released on Prime Video yesterday (February 25), the film debuted to a decent 68% score on Rotten Tomatoes – and was even compared to Pirates of the Caribbean by one pleasantly surprised critic.
"There hasn't been a pirate movie that's captured that feeling of adventure, exploration, romance, and that desperate fight to navigate the world with those you choose by your side [since]," wrote Fangirlish's Lyra Hale. "Then walks in The Bluff, and it ticked off all my boxes while dipping into the brutality of the world of piracy and the lengths women had to go to survive." Now that's high praise around these high seas, eh?
Produced by the Russo Brothers and directed by Frank E. Flowers, it follows a 19th Century woman named Ercell (Chopra Jonas), who's dragged back into a world of booty-hunting and bloodshed when a group of vicious buccaneers reveal her secret swashbuckling past. Urban plays Captain Connor, a man with a deep-rooted grudge against Ercell, while Safia Oakley-Green, Ismael Cruz Cordova (The Rings of Power), Temuera Morrison (Aquaman) round out the cast.
"The Bluff feels charmingly old-fashioned," said Mark Reviews Movies, as Flickering Myth dubbed it "a worthy action vehicle for Priyanka Chopra Jonas, who will hopefully continue to thrive and excel in the genre."
The Guardian critic Owen Myers gave it 3 out of 5 stars, praising Chopra Jonas' performance and the flick's "intricately choreographed" set-pieces.
"The battles [are] epic," Original Cin's John Kirk echoed in their write-up. "What is really exciting is the planning that goes into Ercell's protection of her family as she sets up defences, traps, and cunning stratagems."
"Chopra Jonas and Urban are fantastic adversaries and give this movie the badass energy that crackles with every sword clash and flintlock fired," said JoBlo's Alex Maidy. "This movie takes the conceits and storyline we have seen in films before and gives them a nice edge that keeps you glued to the screen to the very end."
"A largely dull pirate action movie where, despite some decently choreographed and readily violent action, the paint-by-numbers script and bland characters leave it more as a series of familiar tropes than a proper film," wrote a lesser-impressed viewer from Film Feeder.
"It just feels like a movie that's a little too ambitious action-wise, and a lot too inattentive narrative-wise, so you notice all the worst bits more than you otherwise might," matched Ready Steady Cut's Jonathon Wilson.
The Bluff is streaming now. For more, check out our latest picks of the best movies on Amazon Prime.
