A song that foreshadows a major twist and a fun connection to
Wonder Woman. With a complex plot that includes plenty of stunning reveals,
there's a lot more going on in "Heart of Stone" than meets the eye. Spoilers ahead!
Like any great action movie, "Heart of Stone" opens with its hero in the middle of a dangerous
mission. Little do we know, however, that computer expert Rachel Stone isn't even a real
MI6 operative, but is working undercover as one for the enigmatic global intelligence agency known
as the Charter. In this role, she goes behind the back of her MI6 team and takes on an entire
squad of deadly goons without them knowing. But to do it, she has to use every trick she knows.
What you might not notice at first is that the opening action sequence has Stone showing off just
about every skill she'll need in crucial moments later in the film. Beyond her expert marksmanship,
her talent for hacking, and hand-to-hand combat skills, Stone also proves to be a trained
motorcycle rider, stealing a bike from a passerby. She also displays her prowess with a parachute
when she swipes a snowbound paraglider from a pair of skiers and uses it to jump off a cliff.
These skills all come in handy later, including in a high-flying escape where
she's forced to use one parachute to save herself and Keya. Stone also engages in a
thrilling bike chase when she's racing to stop Parker in the film's climax,
and gets to flaunt more mid-air moves when she intercepts Parker with a wingsuit in the sky.
"Heart of Stone" definitely likes teasing the big set pieces early on. The opening
credit sequence is one of the most impressive moments in the entire film,
and in addition to paying tribute visually to genre classics like "Goldfinger" and
"Thunderball," it also pays tribute to the classic spy-thriller trope of previewing
the movie's big action sequences. Just like those examples, the animated opening credits
of "Heart of Stone" subtly foreshadow some of the film's biggest moments.
During the credits, we're given glimpses of Stone's motorcycle chase through the snowy
mountains as she's pursued by a deadly assassin, as well as a hint of her heartstopping escape off
a cliff and into a lagoon. An image of Stone falling from the sky foretells her fall from
the Heart blimp. These details might not mean much on their own, but they are a fun,
clever way of setting up the movie that makes a second watch all the more enjoyable.
Spy movies are one of the action genre's oldest staples, so "Heart of Stone" is
certainly nothing new. From "Mission: Impossible" to the "Bourne" movies,
they've continued to soar in popularity in recent years, too. But "Heart of Stone"
seems to be aiming for a certain energy and tone similar to the franchise that defined the format:
James Bond. While 007's agency, MI6, is a real-life intelligence organization,
the Bond version operates much more closely to the one seen in "Heart of Stone" — a shadowy,
elite group of agents who boast bleeding edge, and indeed futuristic, technology and gadgets.
"I'm undercover, this is just part of it. Everything's under control."
The film's striking opening credits sequence, with bold animation and a pop song, also recalls
Bond movies. Even the incidental score, with its emphasis on horns, feels very "Bond."
The agents of the Charter, meanwhile, are also given secretive code designations, but rather
than numbers like 007, their designations are the numbers and suits in a deck of playing cards.
With superstar Gal Gadot in the title role as Rachel Stone — a tough-as-nails
hero out to save the world from diabolical villains — "Heart of Stone" has one obvious
connection to DC's "Wonder Woman" movies. But the film also has one
more connection to DC's greatest female hero that you might not have noticed.
A close look at the film's credits reveals that the movie was written and produced by Greg Rucka.
Movie buffs may recognize the name for his work on other female-led action movies like Charlize
Theron's "The Old Guard" and Kate Beckinsale's "Whiteout," but Rucka is arguably better known for
his work in the comic book industry, including a pair of iconic runs on DC's "Wonder Woman."
Alongside artist J.G. Jones, Rucka penned "Wonder Woman:
The Hiketeia," where Diana is forced into a showdown with Batman. Not long after, Rucka
became the writer on DC's primary "Wonder Woman" title, on which he remained for several years.
At the heart of "Heart of Stone" is, well, the Heart, a shockingly advanced artificial
intelligence. It's the very core of the Charter, the worldwide agency that few know exists. Thanks
to its highly secretive quantum computing code, the Heart is able to hack into any computer system
in the world. With that ability, it has access to untold amounts of information that allow it to
serve as a predictive model of everything from an individual's behavior to the collapse of nations.
With astonishing accuracy, the Heart helps guide the Charter in its mission to make
the world a better place. In the final moments of the film, though, Rachel Stone reveals that
they can't rely on it alone, because it's not as perfect as it's made out to be. And
for those paying attention, this reveal is actually alluded to very early in the film.
During Stone's daring first mission in the mountains, the Heart predicts that there
is no way for her to accomplish her task after her parachute is stuck on a cable.
"Chance of success just plummeted."
"Only 'cause you've got no imagination."
"Oh, nice."
As Stone says, the Heart lacks human creativity — something she uses to change the odds. It's a
brief moment, but one that underscores that the A.I.'s supposedly perfect algorithms
have some pretty obvious weaknesses, and human assets like Stone are more important than ever.
When we first meet Rachel Stone, we are led to believe that she's a meek computer expert and MI6
agent with no experience in the field. But almost immediately we realize that she's actually one of
the most dangerous and elite secret agents in the world. We also learn that in that
organization she's not just Agent Rachel Stone, but also goes by the code name Nine of Hearts.
As we are told more about the Charter, we learn that the group is based on a deck of standard
playing cards, with four suits — Diamonds, Hearts, Spades, and Clubs — each commanding a different
arm of the organization. Each suit has its own group of agents, but what you might not realize
is that if the Charter's agents are all named after cards in a deck, it means there can only
be 52 total agents. That includes the King of each suit, who operates as the leader of each group.
We also meet administrative agent Jack — the man who operates the Heart — who the closing credits
reveal is actually the Jack of Hearts. It's a fun system, but the format of naming everyone
after playing cards seriously limits the number of agents they can have. This causes a problem
when Stone recruits Keya at the end of the film — and she's forced to name her "Joker."
In the first act, audiences are introduced to a team of
dedicated MI6 agents. The British super-spies are led by agent Parker,
whose team includes point man Bailey and cold-blooded sharpshooter Yang,
alongside Gadot's computer expert Rachel Stone. During their mission, the friendly team members
are frequently seen bickering over what music they're listening to, and it seems
the filmmakers were careful to select choices for each one that matched up with their personality.
The fun-loving, wise-cracking Bailey is a big fan of '80s music:
He's heard playing the hit 1987 Fleetwood Mac tune "Everywhere"
from their album "Tango in the Night," an appropriately playful selection.
"Bailey, you should meet my gran. She has the same taste in music, and you have the same hair."
When Yang has her say, though, the tone shifts to Lizzo's "Juice," a vibrant,
fast-paced modern pop song with sass, which perfectly fits her strong,
gung-ho attitude and exuberant energy, even when she's blowing away the baddies.
Parker, meanwhile — a straight-laced, suave man of mystery — prefers something
more "cultured" and old-fashioned. His song of choice is "Fado Portugues," a
1960s song that actually might mean more than you think in the context of the film.
When it comes to Parker — who is eventually revealed as the true
villain of the film — his own choice of music could actually be seen as a hint
that he's really the hidden mastermind and the very enemy that the Charter is searching for.
Written by Amalia Rodrigues, "Fado Portugues" is taken from her album of the same name. The
fado musical genre, meanwhile, hails largely from Lisbon, Portugal in the 1820s. Those
who have seen "Heart of Stone" will already understand the significance of that location,
because it's where the elusive Keya — the young woman allied with Parker in
his scheme to steal the Heart — is located when the Charter tracks her down. In fact,
they're in Lisbon when he plays the song, suggesting he may have picked it to fit
in. But his familiarity with it may be a clue that he's listened to it before.
"It's called culture."
We're not sure if the choice of song is a sly hint by the filmmakers to plant
the seed for Parker's betrayal, but it certainly seems suspicious in hindsight.
While the film centers on Agent Rachel Stone,
we are also introduced to the four leaders of the different "suits" who run the Charter:
The King of Hearts, the King of Clubs, the King of Diamonds and the King of Spades.
"All four kings in the same room. How long has it been, three years? Not long enough."
The film makes it clear that these are the people who make the big decisions,
but what audiences may not notice is a detail hidden in the Kings that isn't readily apparent.
Pay close attention during the movie, and you'll realize that each suit represents a
different global superpower. King of Diamonds is the United States, King of Clubs is China,
King of Spades is Russia, and King of Hearts is the United Kingdom.
"...diffusing a potential international incident in the South China Sea,
and Diamond's team is handling hackers targeting the North American power grid."
Though they are friendly allies, it doesn't mean that they don't have their issues with one
another, as there is clearly some friction between them during their brief meeting in the film.