Culture 4 min read By Trevor Kendall
A24's 'Onslaught' draws strong reviews as Adam Wingard's unapologetic action-horror hybrid
Adam Wingard's A24 action-horror film 'Onslaught' is earning praise from critics, with an 81% Rotten Tomatoes score, for its B-movie energy and Adria Arjona's lead performance, though some reviewers note its political commentary stays shallow.
Adam Wingard's new A24 action-horror film «Onslaught» is winning over critics with its unapologetic B-movie energy, earning an 81% Rotten Tomatoes score and a 54 out of 100 on Metacritic. The movie stars Adria Arjona as Celeste, an Army sniper who unleashes her lethal skills to protect her young daughter from a rogue squad of genetically engineered soldiers. The cast also includes Alex Pereira, Drew Starkey, and Alex Stevens.
Reviewers are celebrating the film as a return to Wingard's roots after his massive studio success with «Godzilla x Kong,» which became the highest-grossing Godzilla movie ever. Slashfilm's Ryan Scott gave the film a 9 out of 10, calling the casting its secret weapon. Scott praised Arjona, known for «Andor» and «Hit Man,» for ruling as Celeste, and noted the delight of seeing Reginald VelJohnson, best known as Sgt. Powell from «Die Hard,» back in action well into his 70s. He described the film as Wingard saying «f*** it» and doing exactly what he wants after the compromises of big studio filmmaking.
IGN's Tom Jorgensen also awarded a 9 out of 10, writing that Wingard throws a collection of action and B-movie genre influences into a blender and encourages the audience to chug. Jorgensen highlighted Arjona's well-deserved action hero moment, going up against a trio of cool super-soldiers and a shadowy team of fascist freaks with the help of a great supporting cast. AwardsWatch's Alejandra Martinez gave the film an A-, noting that it makes for a fun ride that refuses to compromise its vision in today's milquetoast filmmaking landscape.
The AV Club's Jesse Hassenger gave the film a B, describing it as an exciting, muscular retro slasher stocked with fun performances. Hassenger noted that «Onslaught» technically expands the world of Wingard's 2014 film «The Guest,» though it cuts the human interest down to a couple acres of dusty trailer park. IndieWire's Wilson Chapman was more measured with a B-, observing that while the film might hold anti-military ideals, it is still fundamentally about how guns are rad and one soldier can stand alone and save the day. Chapman argued the commentary takes a decided backseat to thrills, with sensibilities rooted in '80s jingoism without fully subverting it.
The Playlist's Rodrigo Perez gave a B-, calling the film a «Terminator» movie crossed with a slasher and blasted through Wingard's heavy-metal sensibilities. Perez noted there could be substantially more to chew on, but the film knows exactly what kind of movie it wants to be, with enough style, brutality, and gonzo energy to make its modest ambitions mostly forgivable. CGMagazine's Shakyl Lambert scored it 7 out of 10, calling it a good movie on the cusp of a great one, tailor-made for the midnight crowd.
The Guardian's Benjamin Lee was less enthusiastic with a 3 out of 5, arguing that Wingard often falls in the unsatisfying gap between action and slasher. Lee noted that arming slasher villains with guns is plainly not that interesting, and the film feels like it is missing a set piece or two. He did praise Drew Starkey's fun performance as an S&M-loving cleanup agent and Rebecca Hall as a cold-hearted German dominatrix, wishing Wingard had leaned harder into the gonzo perversity. Dread Central's Matt Konopka also gave 3 out of 5, acknowledging the film is weird and fun with Carpenter-esque tone and showers of gore, while Slant Magazine's Rocco T. Thompson awarded 2.5 out of 4, noting the characters are more interesting than the story they serve.
