Dan

If you don’t mind scripts and dialog that seem like they were the result of a 13-year-old boy and 15-year-old girl fighting over the keyboard, then Quantico can be entertaining. To a point. The show uses a really fun mechanism of flashbacks (or flash-forwards) to propel the mystery and suspense. However, the number of eye-rolling moments where logically disjointed, emotionally mismatched, or absurdly over-the-top reactions are frequent to the point of distraction. Make no mistake: The writing is ***not*** good. It falls back on lazy stereotypes, has characters make illogical assumptions about their cases with a regularity that can only be seen as a ham-fisted effort force the storyline in certain directions. The characters all exhibit personality traits that, quite honestly, if this was in any way close to what Quantico is actually like, Americans should just give up and lie down, because we’re all going to die thanks to uncontrolled hormones among the “best and brightest” in the FBI. The entire staff from writers to directors to producers also don’t appear to understand what the word “rhetorical” actually means and seem to think setting up characters clearly on the Autism spectrum as punchline material is perfectly fine entertainment. Granted, the series was from 2015, so... No, wait. We knew better in 2015 too. If you want mindless TV with a base level of fun, Quantico could fit the bill. But it’s no “The Americans.”

This film has a surprisingly original premise that introduces some equally interesting moral quandaries. But damned if the clunky character dialogue doesn’t interrupt the viewing experience. It’s distracting to a fault how improbable and forced the dialogue seems. And the sudden gratuitous application of f-bombs by a main characters in the third act jolts the viewer from the tension and suspense the film worked so hard to build towards in the first and second acts. It’s a passable sci-fi film, but could have done with better oversight from the producers.