Pretty Lethal is exactly the kind of movie that sounds like a massive fever dream when you explain it to your friends. Five competitive ballerinas get stranded at a creepy inn in the woods and have to fight their way through a ruthless gang of criminals using their dance skills. Throw in Uma Thurman as a disgruntled former ballet prodigy turned crime boss, and you should have an absolute masterpiece of chaotic cinema. Unfortunately, this recent Amazon Prime release lands squarely in the middle of the road. It earns a very solid three stars.
First, let us talk about the good stuff. The core cast brings a ton of energy to the screen. Lana Condor is hilarious and easily steals every single scene she is in. Maddie Ziegler and the rest of the troupe make the choreography look incredibly convincing. When the girls finally tape razor blades to their fingers and weaponize their pointe shoes, the action sequences are surprisingly brutal and genuinely entertaining. The director, Vicky Jewson, clearly knows how to shoot a dynamic fight scene. You can feel the influence of modern action thrillers throughout the whole runtime.
However, the film struggles to maintain a consistent pace. At barely ninety minutes long, the story rushes through character development. We barely get to know these dancers beyond their basic surface traits before the blood starts spilling everywhere. The script is surprisingly thin, relying heavily on tired genre cliches that feel a bit outdated for 2026. Then there is Uma Thurman. She is an absolute legend and clearly understands the campy assignment, but the movie takes itself a little too seriously at times, preventing her from going completely over the edge into iconic villain territory.
In the end, Pretty Lethal is a fun weekend watch if you want to switch off your brain and enjoy some creative combat. It has excellent moments of suspense and some really satisfying takedowns. Just do not expect a deeply layered story or complex character arcs. It is a perfectly average popcorn flick that promises wild fun but only delivers on about half of it.
