NEW YORK, May 10 (UPI) -- Writer-director Joe Carnahan says he wanted audiences to be as invested in the family drama at the heart of his new film, Shadow Force, as they are in the high-octane action sequences.
"It's always nice to kind of have an expectation about something and it gets subverted in a really great, satisfying way, and I think that's what we set out to do. It's a great adage about give the audience what they want, the way they least expect it," Carnahan told UPI in a recent Zoom interview.
The film follows Kyrah (Kerry Washington) and Isaac (Omar Sy), married former agents of the titular multi-national agency, who are trying to keep their young son Ky (Jahleel Kamera) safe from enemies they've made over the years.
One of the most memorable scenes in the movie expertly blends the family affection with a heart-pounding bank robbery/shootout by dropping Ky in the middle and challenging his father to not only physically protect him, but also ensure he isn't traumatized over what he witnesses by having him cover his ears and close his eyes.
"That could have been a place that presented difficulties that we couldn't overcome, but It just worked, I think, because you bought into that family dynamic. Because you instantly kind of adhere to and really like those characters, we may have gotten away with a little bit," Carnahan said.
The real-life father of twin 10-year-old daughters said he imagined how he would react if he found himself in a dangerous situation with his kids and had to keep his cool to keep them alive.
"You don't want it to be overly corny. You want it have a feeling, some sense of terra firma, like you're grounded, and I think when you get actors like Omar and Kerry and the rest of that cast, they just do this innately beautiful job of making it feel realistic," he said.
"When you do that and you imperil these characters that you really care about, it's that much more effective."
Another aspect that sets the movie apart from others of its ilk are the frequent mentions of legendary 1970s and '80s singer-songwriter Lionel Richie and the use of his music throughout the story.
"'Truly' was my middle-school slow dance song," Carnahan said.
"I just thought it would be such an interesting juxtaposition for this young kid to be so into the Commodores and Lionel Richie and that's all he wanted to listen to," he added, referring to Ky. "I have a great fondness for that. That's the music of my childhood."
Carnahan was thrilled when Richie agreed to allow him to use his music for the film.
"That was such a boon," he said. "I was so tickled by that whole thing. But, again, it's something that you don't expect in there that you get and I think that's always fun for an audience."
The filmmaker is also excited to hear that stunt performers like the ones that make Shadow Force such a wild ride will soon be eligible for Oscar recognition.
"That is so fantastic. There's so many guys I want to call and go, 'Get ready, pal, you might have a little gold guy,'" Carnahan said.
"All due respect to the Saturn Awards, but the Oscars are the Oscars. I know a lot of [stunt performers] and I know a lot of broken-down guys, old-school men and women that should have [been celebrated]. I would love them to honor some of them with posthumous Oscars," he added.
"I'm so thankful that the Academy has finally decided to honor these people because that history is as rich as anything else in Hollywood and as old as the city or town itself."
Mark Strong, Da'Vine Joy Randolph and Method Man co-star.
