We recently spoke to Cal Gadot about 'Agent Stone’, his best bet as a solo star on Netflix (he has 'Red Alert’ alongside Ryan Gosling and Dwayne Johnson) and how Diana (Wonder Woman) marked both roles and his career. Unlike the DC Comics superheroine, Rachel Stone is an ordinary girl. A super spy and Gal Gadot can be as ordinary as they can be. He is a person without the powers to live in our own world. Only success will tell if we’re facing another action movie or the start of a Gadot-led female spy franchise, capitalizing on the fact that the 007 seat is still vacant in James Bond.
The truth is that 'Agent Stone’ sometimes aims to speak seriously about our world. The plot takes us to a reality where, like 'Citadel’, a super agency of independent spies dominates Parrot. The Stone of „9 Hearts” of this powerful system must prevent the theft of the „Heart” of the advanced AI that controls The Letter and guides the action every step of the way. In the wrong hands, this hack-anything technology can make anyone rule the world. For those who saw 'Mission Impossible: Deadly Judgment – Part 1′ in theaters, this argument will sound familiar. However, while 'Agent Stone’ doesn’t reinvent the wheel in terms of its plot or the perils of the present, we expect more on its social side.
Gal Gadot’s female spy doesn’t have a romantic relationship, which is an obstacle for a female protagonist in today’s cinema, but it’s so heavy in Hollywood that it doesn’t stop proposing flamboyant and completely empty female characters. In everything else they continue to fall. But the major drawback of 'Agent Stone’ is another cliché that carries a lot of weight in Hollywood, its depiction of the „extraordinary” and the cliché of everything to do with foreign countries. We might enjoy putting the same color filter they use in the Caribbean on the streets in Lisbon or sending them out to eat „tapas”. After all, these movies use countries as different settings for action scenes. And don’t worry, they can chase you down at a ski resort in Austria, on the streets of the historic center of an Italian city, at the San Fermins in Seville, or at a restaurant on the roof of the Eiffel Tower.
We assume they’re not going to explore any of those countries, simple scenes considered smaller than green chromas. However, the problem is when glamor reflects malicious topics. Lately, yes, Hollywood is starting to position America as a country that uses or wants to use nuclear and chemical weapons. After all, history tells us that they, not Russia, China or any country in the Middle East, are capable of using them.
The film 'Agent Stone’ will not fall for it either. The bad guy, though another cliché in today’s cinema, is a cis heterosexual white guy, and the bad guy turned good guy is an Arab girl. So far, everything is good. But 'Agent Stone’ continues to smuggle racism into a part of the world with each visit of its cast. Beyond Spanish-speaking Lisbon, a small joke, the problem is more serious in Senegal. The stone miraculously „lands” in the middle of an African desert. As if they read our minds and are literally going to rewrite the history of racist clichés in Hollywood, the protagonists think they’re going to be terrorists or guerrillas when a car comes to pick them up, adorable. Middle aged woman.
Let’s see, we clearly know that there are many countries with armed conflicts in Africa. It is clear that it is normal to find an ordinary person in advance, not an armed gang across the continent. Hollywood seems to have no shepherds, no housewives, no lawyers, no tour guides or chefs in Africa. If you run into someone in Africa, they’re from X Guerrilla and they’re after you. For this reason, we are glad that, for a moment, 'Agent Stone’ seems to want to break this stereotype, and its protagonists hallucinate that the car that drives them is a good girl’s car.
But happiness doesn’t last long. Of course, the woman was a con woman and she leads them to a small town where a trap awaits them, yes, now all the Africans have their Ak-47 to shoot the protagonists. 'Agent Stone’ seems to have agreed to reinforce the racist theme later if possible.
’Agent Stone’ is already available on Netflix and if it’s successful, we wouldn’t rule out 'Agent Stone 2′.
Raphael is an expert on movies, series and video games. Although he didn’t miss a Marvel or Netflix moment of success due to professional decay, his classic and auteur cinema. He also has his geek side as he specializes in anime, K-pop and all Asian cultures.
Generation wise, sometimes it’s his turn to write hit songs from Bizarap to Blackpink. It also has its erotic side, but unfortunately, the selection of the best erotic series and movies is limited. But it is not limited there as he likes to write about gastronomy, travel, humor and memes.
After 5 years writing for Photogramas and Esquire, it’s true that he’s already done everything from interviews with international stars to mobile phone presentations or oil flavors, insects and, yes, luckily, wine.
Studied Audiovisual Communication at the University of Murcia. He then earned a master’s degree in communication media research at the Carlos III University of Madrid. In addition to starting a doctorate on sexual representation in the auteur cinema (which she did not finish), she earned a master’s degree in film criticism at both ECAM and the Escuela de Escritores. Previously, he wrote hard on the blog Cinealacarbonara, continued in media such as Amanesemetropolis, Culturamas or Revista Magnolia, and dedicated all his efforts to Revista Mutaciones since its foundation.
He arrived at Hearst in 2018 and managed to gain a foothold in the Photogrammes and Esquire newsrooms, with which he continues to write about everything he likes and is sent (he often agrees). His good or bad taste (depending on how you look at it) led him into the world of gastronomy and video games. Come on, he wants to please himself.
