Major Grom: Plague Doctor

The Russians are already making it clear that they are full-fledged competitors to Hollywood, and Mayor Grom is truly a comic book smash! Mayor Grom has a touch of The Dark Knight, Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes and Matthew Vaughn's creative camera work! The protagonist is a likable detective who lives in poverty, is not very popular with his colleagues, doesn't take bribes, and is a fair guy for whom the law plays a major role. He is quite similar to Bruce Wayne, he solves everything with intelligence, and the police department and the city resemble Gotham. I loved that they show how the protagonist imagines several possible situations how to solve the case, where he also dies several times during the process. This has a Sherlock feel to it, where he has to solve the best possible equation to succeed, and at times it feels like a time loop movie, which I just love. Everything changes when a villain called the Plague Doctor starts running amok in the city, dressed in a black costume, with flamethrowers and a cool mask, publicly executing corrupt cops, officials and criminals. That's the plot. The whole film has amazing visuals, great CGI, nice locations in St. Petersburg, likeable characters, an engaging plot with some unexpected twists (the reveal of the bad guy and his motive is great), well shot action, the fights are choreographed very well and have the right flair, though I would have liked a bit more of them. It's not R-rated, of course, but that's to be expected. A rather revolutionary film for Russia, which could be a success here too. 8/10. (06/02/2021)