Movie · 2022 · Action, Thriller · 2h 8m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 1.4/10 (781.1K ratings)
Overview
When a shadowy CIA agent uncovers damning agency secrets, he's hunted across the globe by a sociopathic rogue operative who's put a bounty on his head.
Ratings
Curator score: 1.4/10
IMDb: 6.5/10
Letterboxd: 2.81/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 45%
Metacritic: 49
TMDB: 6.9/10
Director
Joe Russo, Anthony Russo
Production
AGBO, Roth-Kirschenbaum Films
Cast
Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Billy Bob Thornton, Jessica Henwick, Dhanush, Alfre Woodard, Regé-Jean Page, Wagner Moura, Julia Butters, Shea Whigham, Deobia Oparei, Robert Kazinsky, Daz Crawford, Callan Mulvey, Charlit Dae, Cameron Crovetti, Chris Castaldi, Jeremy Tichy, Marián Mitaš
Where to watch
Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A glossy, fast-moving spy thriller with a strong premise, a few lively set pieces, and a fun villain turn from Chris Evans, but it’s also overstuffed, impersonal, and often surprisingly flat for a movie this expensive. Worth it if you want a loud, disposable globe-trotting action ride; less so if you want sharp writing, memorable action geography, or real character depth.
Best for
fans of slick streaming-era action movies
viewers who enjoy cat-and-mouse spy plots
people who like charismatic villains chewing scenery
audiences looking for a low-commitment popcorn watch
Skip if
you want tightly staged action with clear geography
you’re hoping for strong chemistry or emotional stakes
you dislike generic blockbuster visual noise
you prefer spy films with wit, tension, and personality
Overview
The Gray Man is built like a prestige-sized streaming product: expensive, international, and constantly in motion, but rarely alive. It has the bones of a good espionage chase movie, and the central conflict between a hunted operative and a gleefully unhinged pursuer should work better than it does. The result is competent more than thrilling, with action that often feels smothered by smoke, edits, and corporate caution.
Worth noting
Chris Evans is the movie’s clearest pleasure, leaning into a smirking, vain, almost cartoonish menace that gives the film some badly needed texture. Ryan Gosling plays the stoic lead with his usual dry ease, but the script gives him too little to do beyond endure. Ana de Armas and the supporting cast are underused, which is a recurring frustration in a film that keeps promising bigger payoffs than it delivers.
Bottom line
If you’re in the mood for a high-budget diversion, it goes down easily enough. But as a spy-action showcase, it feels like a reminder that scale is not the same thing as style, and star power is not the same thing as momentum.
Top Letterboxd reviews
•lily• (1.5★) · 5071 likes
The two paintball episodes of community which joe russo directed are more stylised and better directed than the $200 million dollar action film he directed with his brother 11 years later
othavio 🇵🇸 · 3709 likes
maybe the real villain was this ugly ass moustache on chris evans face
demi adejuyigbe · 3485 likes
Baz Luhrmann’s John Wick
sophie (3★) · 3258 likes
my excitement when chris evans called ryan gosling a ken doll overpowered the boredom i felt during the rest of the movie
Jannis (2.5★) · 2609 likes
I liked the part where Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans kissed.