‘Role Play’ (2024) Review – A Rudderless Attempt At Prime Video And Chill

Role Play should have been a fun, even sexy romp, a similar mix of films such as Salt and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Then throw in a dash of a stale marriage from This Is 40 and a little danger to your life to spice things up a bit. Think of something like True Lies, where you could challenge the gender roles presented and explore that type of independence, consistent with the liberal feminist theory prevalent today.

However, the new action-comedy-thriller starring The Big Bang Theory’s Kaley Cuoco and Lawmen: Bass Reeves’s David Oyelowo is a tepid genre film that never fully embraces its fun premise. Much of the problem lies in the movie’s uneven script, characterized by an overly prolonged first act.

The story follows Emma (Cuoco) and David Brackett (Oyelowo) as they raise their family and live their lives in a picturesque town somewhere in the suburbs of New Jersey. Their yard is immaculate, their home is quaint, and their children, the adorable Caroline (Lucia Aliu) and Wyatt (Regan Bryan-Gudgeon) are happy. Yes, the Bracketts have the world by a string.

However, while David and the kids think Emma is a regional sales executive for a midsized company, she’s actually harboring a secret. Emma is a secret assassin for hire. When Emma says she’s in Lincoln, Nebraska, she’s in Prague. When in Brussels, she’s supposed to be in Boise. Instead, she’s killing people for hire under the protection of her handler, Raj (Rudi Dharmalingam).

Written by Seth W. Owen (All Nighter) and directed by French filmmaker Thomas Vincent (The New Life of Paul Sneijder), their film is anything but wry, exciting, or unpredictable. It’s as if they are following the “spy unbeknownst to me” genre playbook step by step. Owen’s script seems to include the obligatory comic relief found in such films. At the very least, this could have diverted the audience from its utter predictability.

For instance, when two well-known actors appear with little to do in relatively minor supporting roles, the game is up. Billy Nighy’s lonely bar patron and Connie Nielsen’s overzealous CIA agent appear in relatively few scenes. Especially in Nielsen’s case, they set up long sequences for a payoff that ultimately falls flat. This particular scene should have had some heat, spark, or plain old suspense, but it feels awkward without the intended humor.

This is where Role Play makes its fatal mistake. The first act is so long that it skips over the second altogether. The script should have had Cuoco’s Emma bring Oyelowo’s David into her world. Allowing David some excitement, anxiety, and humor while watching his wife, in a sense, role play and gaining an appreciation for her as a person. This would flesh out the story and make the audience care about the couple and the outcome.

The main reason to watch Role Play is Kaley Cuoco. The prospect of her being an action star is intriguing. Those are the film’s very best scenes, but there are far few in between. This attempt at a Prime Video and chill session sleepwalks from beginning to end. A rudderless film diversion that’s virtually zero charm.

Role Play is now available to stream on Prime Video.