Tsk tsk. There wasn’t much to be proud about with this movie. Proud Mary was a good shoot ’em up flick that belonged on cable television. Taraji P. Henson carried the film as best she could but no one person can salvage a terrible script. Don’t get me wrong, when she showed up, she kicked major ass. The fight choreography was very impressive, but that’s about it.

The problem with this film is that it didn’t have a clear identity. Was it trying to be an ode to the Blaxploitation genre or a modern action blockbuster? I can tell you it failed at both. There were a lot of elements that didn’t make sense. I didn’t know what was at stake. The world felt really small, as if it was cut off from the rest of society. Gang wars and shootings in broad daylight. No police presence or news coverage?!!

Once again, the actors were not the problem. They delivered good performances for a bunch of tough guys. It’s just in 2018 I would have liked to see a group of black spec ops instead of gangsters. Proud Mary needed a bigger budget, better promotion, and an additional hour of storytelling. I wanted to know more about the characters, their history, and motivations. I give it a 5.5 out of 10.