Dirty Angels
Dirty Angels (2024/2025) is a female-led action thriller directed by veteran filmmaker Martin Campbell. The film stars Eva Green as Jake, an experienced U.S. Army Ranger haunted by past trauma, who is tasked with assembling a skilled all-women commando team on a high-stakes rescue mission during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Set in late 2021, the story revolves around a group of Afghan girls kidnapped from a school, including the daughter of the Afghan Minister of Education and the U.S. Ambassador’s child. When a conventional Delta Force mission fails, Jake forms a covert unit composed of specialists codenamed Mechanic, Medic, The Bomb, Shooter, and Geek. Disguised as relief workers, they infiltrate the hostile region with the goal of rescuing the hostages.
Eva Green’s portrayal of Jake is marked by a steely resolve and the emotional weight of her troubled past. Her cold American accent and terse delivery bring gravitas to the role, elevating the narrative amidst familiar action-movie tropes. Supporting Green are Maria Bakalova as The Bomb, Ruby Rose as Medic, Rona-Lee Shimon as Mechanic, Jojo T. Gibbs as Geek, and Emily Bruni as Shooter. Together, they create a squad dynamic that is competently staged, although some critics feel the characters lack deeper development.
Visually, the film is notable for its dynamic and intense action sequences, including graphic violence such as gunfights, decapitations, and explosive confrontations. This visceral tone underlines the dangers and brutality of the mission. Cinematographer David Tattersall enhances the realism by contrasting the stark, war-torn landscapes with the claustrophobic settings of operational planning and covert infiltration.
Critical reception of Dirty Angels has been mixed. While the direction by Martin Campbell and the cast’s performances, especially Eva Green’s, have been praised, the film has faced criticism for its thin character development and reliance on action genre clichés. Some reviewers have found the narrative shallow and ethically simplistic, with a tendency to reduce complex geopolitical issues into stereotypes. Others have described the film as uneven, with a suspenseful build-up that ultimately lacks a satisfying payoff.
Audience reactions have varied. Some viewers appreciated the intense action and the portrayal of female camaraderie, seeing the squad’s dynamic as one of the film’s strengths. However, others have pointed out flaws in accents, script logic, and production values, sometimes labeling the film as lacking polish or coherence.
Dirty Angels was released in select theaters and on video-on-demand in December 2024, with a later streaming release on Lionsgate Play in March 2025. With a runtime of 104 minutes, the film offers a stark, old-school action experience that leans heavily on the power of its cast and the grit of its combat sequences.
In conclusion, Dirty Angels is a gritty and blood-soaked action thriller centered on strong female leads operating in a warzone setting. Its stylized combat scenes and Eva Green’s commanding performance provide moments of intensity. However, structural weaknesses such as thin subplots, inconsistent accents, and a reliance on familiar genre conventions limit its overall impact. Fans of traditional military action films may find it entertaining, but viewers seeking deeper storytelling and character development might find it underwhelming.
