January 23rd, 2015 
James Shotwell 
Film: Everly
Starring: Selma Hayek
Directed by: Joe Lynch
With bullets and creative flare to spare, Everly ushers in a new age of cool for its lead, as well as its director.
Joe Lynch hasn’t made a feature-length film that made it to audiences with his vision in tact since Wrong Turn 2. In the time between, Joe has contributed to various film projects (Chillerama, for example), starred in a sitcom (Holliston), and even made a movie that was taken from him and cut to shreds by a third party who then completely mishandled the flick’s release (Knights Of Badassdom). All of that has been interesting enough, but I don’t think anything in Lynch’s history could properly prepare viewers for the violent, yet heartfelt adventure that is Everly.
Starring Selma Hayek, Everly tells the story of a woman pushed too far by men who put her in a terrible position. It’s something akin to your classic revenge tale, but instead of wasting a third of its runtime with back story, Everly chooses to begin at the exact moment when the lead character has reached her breaking point. After years spent as a sex slave to a powerful underground kingpin, Everly has chosen to fight for her existence, and in doing so she will be forced to claim many bad guy lives. Why? Because, dear reader, no one gets out of an underground sex ring without first killing dozens of people.
It’s easy to understand why your first impression of Everly may cause you to think of it as The Raid, only this time it stars a woman and is set in a single apartment. That would be cool, but it’s not the movie Joe Lynch has created. After her initial rampage cools down, Everly transforms from a story of revenge to one of survival, and it’s at that point both Lynch and Hayek truly begin to shine. The gunplay is still heavy and frequent, but there is much, much more to be experienced as well. Whether you’re looking for creepy super villains with tools and cages sure to give you nightmares or a genuinely compelling story about a mother’s enduring love for her child (on multiple levels), this is the flick for you. It has heart, soul, violence, and plenty of moments that will leave your jaw on the floor.
One of the main reasons this film not only works, but in fact rises above its genre peers is due to the incredibly badass performance of Selma Hayek. It has been nearly a decade since we saw her action chops put to use on the big screen, and even longer since they were used in a film worth talking about. Everly allows her to not only reclaim her title as one of the most talented female action stars, but also provides enough moments of sentimentality to remind you she is as dynamic a talent as you could hope to find. This is certainly due in part to the super writing of Yale Hannon, who wrote the screenplay after developing the original idea alongside Lynch, but to be fair his writing only works because of the way Hayek delivers it on screen. It’s the perfect combination of talent, and it makes for a thrilling journey.
Not to be overshadowed by his leading lady, filmmaker Joe Lynch also shows a nice bit of growth with Everly. There was never really a question as to whether or not Lynch could handle the execution of shoot-outs and other moments of tension, but here he is able to showcase other sides of his storytelling abilities as well. I wouldn’t go as far as to say he’s mastered his craft, but Lynch has definitely come a long way from his previous work. Aside from a handful of shots that feel weak due to the way they’re either lit or framed, Everly is as slick as any other action title found in theaters today. There’s even a nice Fincher-esque sequence near the end that, without giving too much away, explores the entire set of the film in a powerful, beautiful and incredibly smooth fashion. It’s the kind of moment that hints at what Lynch may pull of in the years ahead, and it’s sure to be an incredibly exciting sight for any fan of his work.
It’s easy to oversell action movies simply because they offer something different from your typical studio feature, but Everly truly is something special. From the opening sequence right on through to the heart-stopping end, Joe Lynch and his team have crafted a crazy, intense, and altogether batshit insane story that manages to not only make your heart race with excitement, but also feel for the plight of the protagonist. More importantly, they’ve done so with an original tale that will surely not be duplicated anytime in the foreseeable future.
I don’t know what else to say. You need to see this movie. You will cheer, you will shake with fear, and you will walk away feeling like you’ve just went on the ride of your life.
GRADE: A-
Review written by James Shotwell Follow @utgjames
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