By Steve Crum
You can’t blame Heart of Stone for delivering one explosive stunt sequence after another. Or can you? From the get-go, we are caught up in a caper involving deception and danger. And that’s even before the opening credits.
Director Tom Harper, known for his British TV and film work, guides heroine Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman) through 122 minutes of undercover spy vs spy adventures to maintain peace in our treacherous world.
The problem lies in originality, the lack thereof. We have seen similar undercover/spy/gang infiltration set pieces in a myriad number of movies and TV shows. That makes Heart’s opening so predictable. It brings to mind the Mission: Impossible franchise, the James Bond franchise, and numerous TV takes—including Chicago PD and Law & Order Special Victims Unit.
Heart of Stone’s Rachel Stone (aka “Nine of Hearts”—her spy moniker) is a hybrid of Ethan Hunt and James Bond. She is as adept on both the ground (a motorcycle race) and airborne (a dirigible). The stunt work is awesome. This is particularly true of the mountaintop confrontation that involves Heart, a ski lift, parachute, and on and on. I could not help but think of the memorable Swiss mountain lab of Blofeld in On 
Her Majesty’s Secret Service. (George Lazenby lives!)
Shall we say that Greg Rucka and Allison Schroeder’s screenplay has been greatly inspired from several sources. At least they moved the location from Switzerland to the Italian Alps.
Like the Mission: Impossible plots, Heart of Stone has a confusing premise. At the outset, Stone works with fellow M16 field agents Parker (Jamie Dornan), Yang (Jing Lusi) and Bailey (Paul Ready). They are tracking arms dealer Mulvaney (Enzo Cilenti). But Stone is actually running quarterback for Charter, a secret organization dedicated to peacekeeping.
Keep in mind that “Nine of Hearts” is trying to keep a nefarious digital service from world domination by hacking into worldwide operations. Treachery and disloyalty abound throughout the plot as the body count increases.
But does “Nine of Hearts” survive?
Cue the James Bond theme.
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GRADE on an A-F Scale: B-