CANARY BLACK 2024 – ACTION MOVIE REVIEW

May 6, 2025

Avery Graves leads a double life as a covert CIA agent, with her husband, David (Rupert Friend), unaware of her true profession. Their lives are upended when David is abducted by terrorists led by Konrad Breznov (Goran Kostić). The kidnappers demand that Avery retrieve a top-secret file known as “Canary Black” in exchange for David’s safety.

This file contains a cyberweapon capable of disrupting global digital infrastructure, posing a threat of unprecedented scale.

As Avery embarks on this mission, she finds herself at odds with her own agency, including her mentor Jarvis Hedlund (Ray Stevenson). Cut off from official support, she turns to her underworld contacts and navigates a treacherous landscape of shifting alliances and betrayals. Her journey takes her across various international locales, including Zagreb, Ljubljana, and Rovinj, which doubles for Tokyo in the film.

As the movie unfolds, Avery discovers that the Canary Black file is far more dangerous than she initially believed, with the potential to unleash a doomsday virus. The situation becomes even more complex when it’s revealed that David is not merely a victim but is, in fact, an assassin named Kali. He orchestrated his own kidnapping to manipulate Avery into stealing the file, intending to sell it to settle debts with a Russian mob.

In a final showdown at Breznov’s headquarters, Avery confronts both Breznov and David. David, experiencing a change of heart, turns against Breznov to save Avery. Together, they prevent the release of the virus, averting a global crisis. However, David disappears during the chaos, leaving his fate uncertain.

Following the mission, Avery is arrested by the CIA but is soon recruited by Elizabeth Mills into a new covert agency, MC6. The film concludes with Avery finding her wedding ring at a location significant to her and David, suggesting he may still be alive.

Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Rupert Friend, Goran Kostić, Ray Stevenson, Saffron Burrows

Director: Pierre Morel

Runtime: 101 minutes

Watch trailer here.