The Protege came out in theaters this August. It was a solid action vehicle elevated by the chemistry between Maggie Q and Michael Keaton, and Q’s physical abilities. Now it’s available on home video with a standard array of bonus features like every movie got in the early days of DVD.
The behind the scenes feature is 37 minutes long. It shows director Martin Campbell directing Q in action. The thorough documentary traces the film through script development, actors’ rehearsal and prep and post-production. They include below-the-line craftspeople like the editor and director of photography.
It gets technical for those viewers studying that aspect of filmmaking. This production also came up against the COVID-19 outbreak, so navigating that is part of the documentary. Another eight minute featurette focuses on the Q/Keaton fight/love scene. A deleted scene shows Q telling off a dude bro hitting on her in a satisfying way.
Campbell gives a thorough commentary with the film. He discusses decisions he made on the set and basic fundamentals that made specific scenes work. Like in the old days of commentaries, he spends a fair amount of time describing what’s happening on screen and complementing his cast and crew. But in the interest of highlighting their involvements, he’s right. That’s exactly what makes movies like The Protege more satisfying than their knock offs.
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