---
title: "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle"
year: 2003
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/charlies-angels-full-throttle"
fi1m_id: "charlies-angels-full-throttle"
imdb_id: "tt0305357"
tmdb_id: 9471
wikidata_id: "Q229603"
fi1m_score: 50
critics_score: 44
critics_reviews: 10
published: "2026-10-05T03:03:04.896241+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-05T03:03:05.349816+00:00"
region: "CH"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003)

Directed by McG · 1h 46m · CH 16 · Action, Adventure, Comedy

## Identity

Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/charlies-angels-full-throttle
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** charlies-angels-full-throttle
- **IMDb ID:** tt0305357
- **TMDB ID:** 9471
- **Wikidata ID:** Q229603
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0305357/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/9471, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q229603

**Fi1m score: 50** · Critics 44 from 10 reviews

*In a sentence:* A pleasant evening with Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu, repeatedly interrupted by the editing

> Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu make agreeable company, but McG keeps hurrying past their appeal. Frantic cutting and weak comic detours wear down a promisingly playful cast.

## Synopsis

Natalie Cook (Cameron Diaz), Dylan Sanders (Drew Barrymore) and Alex Munday (Lucy Liu) are the central trio in this action-adventure comedy directed by McG. The ensemble brings in Madison Lee (Demi Moore), Jimmy Bosley (Bernie Mac) and Seamus O’Grady (Justin Theroux), alongside Ray Carter (Robert Patrick) and the Thin Man (Crispin Glover). Max Petroni (Shia LaBeouf), Pete Kominsky (Luke Wilson), Jason Gibbons (Matt LeBlanc) and Mr. Munday (John Cleese) complete the principal cast. The running time is 106 minutes, with a 12A certificate.

## Review

*Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle* has three leads who look as though they enjoy one another’s company, and that gets it a fair way. McG directs as though their good humour needs constant assistance, preferably something moving fast across the screen. We find the result intermittently enjoyable and eventually tiring, with too few good jokes to justify all the commotion. An action comedy can be cheerfully silly without asking much of a story, but it still needs to let a moment play.

Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu give the film its most dependable pleasure. Their shared ease makes the prospect of this trio spending time together appealing, even when the material gives us little reason to care about what they are doing. There is a generosity in the performances that keeps the silliness from feeling entirely calculated. We do not need them to be solemn or psychologically complicated. We need the film to stay with them long enough for their comic timing to count.

Russell Carpenter’s glossy cinematography suits the exuberance, and some of the stunt work has enough energy to carry us along. The difficulty is seeing an action passage through without feeling hurried past its pleasures. Editors Tritia Espinoza and Wayne Wahrman keep pushing the pace when a clearer view of the movement would be more rewarding. McG rarely allows us the useful pause in which to register where people are and what they have just done.

The same impatience reduces what the other crafts can contribute. J. Michael Riva’s production design gives the eye plenty to occupy it, but the settings struggle to register amid the restless presentation. Edward Shearmur’s music supplies further momentum where the film could use less insistence. None of this feels short of effort, and the pop-video gloss is often agreeable. Keeping everything competing for attention wears us down.

The screenplay by Marianne Wibberley, Cormac Wibberley and John August is weakest when the action stops for comic business. We were bored by the sequence of bottom jokes; repeating the same schoolboy idea does nothing to make it funnier. The performers are left having to supply a sense of fun that the writing has not earned. The tonal lurches also make it harder to accept the friendship as anything beyond an agreeable way of linking the set pieces.

Crispin Glover is a useful interruption as the Thin Man: the performance has an oddness that the noisier material could use. There is room in an action comedy for something peculiar without every moment having to announce itself. Yet at 106 minutes this one often feels as though it has exhausted its jokes and is keeping busy to avoid admitting it. The goodwill generated by the central trio can only cover so much repetition.

We can forgive implausibility readily enough in this sort of film; physical credibility is hardly the main attraction. A joke that lands and an action scene we can follow would be reasonable things to ask for. The cast supplies enough warmth to prevent a thoroughly miserable evening, but we cannot recommend the film on that basis. Try it only if seeing these three performers together outweighs a low tolerance for frantic cutting.

*Fi1m score 50, published 5 October 2026.*

## What the critics say

The reviews lean negative on Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, though praise clusters around the leads’ chemistry and the action’s energy. Supporters enjoy the playful sisterhood of Diaz, Barrymore and Liu, while even some detractors find individual performances watchable. The more favourable accounts treat its pop-video visuals and energetic stunts as sufficient entertainment, with little expectation of substance beneath them.

The spread is wide: Variety considers it a crowd-pleasing improvement on the original, praising action that other reviews find frantic or difficult to follow. Reservations centre on thin material, repetitive comedy and spectacle that cannot disguise the lack of invention; The AV Club particularly objects to the juvenile humour and editing. There is also disagreement over the supporting turns: Slant Magazine finds some compensation in Crispin Glover’s return, while complaints elsewhere about irritating or embarrassing cameos suggest that the film’s playfulness is far from universally enjoyed.

## Straight answers

**Is Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle worth watching?**

*Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle* is hard to recommend beyond fans of its three leads; we score it 50 out of 100. Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu make agreeable company, but frantic editing obscures the action and weak jokes wear down their appeal. Try it only if their shared warmth matters more to us than clear action and reliable laughs.

**How long is Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, and what is it rated?**

*Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle* runs 1h 46m and is rated 16 by the CH in Switzerland. It is an action and adventure film.

**Where can I watch Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle in Switzerland?**

*Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle* is available to rent from Apple TV from CHF 4.50. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, and is it suitable for children?**

*Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle* has a UK 12A certificate, so children under 12 need an accompanying adult at the cinema. Its action includes energetic stunt work and frantic cutting, while the comedy includes repeated bottom jokes. We would not treat it as an unrestricted children's choice; the certificate calls for parental judgement, and our review does not establish how graphic or frightening it gets.

**How does Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle compare to Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown?**

*Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle* is the weaker choice beside [*Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown*](https://film.one/film/women-on-the-verge-of-a-nervous-breakdown) if the attraction is frantic ensemble comedy. We find the former's likeable leads repeatedly hurried past by the editing, while Pedro Almodóvar's farce keeps Carmen Maura's Pepa interesting through its complications. The latter also gets overbusy, but offers more dependable comedy.

### Reviews we read (10)

- **Variety**, Amy Dawes (90/100, inferred): Dawes calls the sequel a joyous, crowd-pleasing improvement on the original. She especially praises its fresh, cohesive action and the playful sisterhood at its heart. [Read](https://variety.com/2003/film/reviews/charlie-s-angels-full-throttle-1200540951/)
- **Time Out**, AHa (70/100, inferred): The review is positive about the film’s exuberant entertainment. It singles out the dynamic ensemble of Diaz, Barrymore and Liu as its main strength. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/charlies-angels-full-throttle)
- **Screen Daily**, John Hazelton (64/100, inferred): The page identifies this as a review, but its text is behind a paywall. The critic’s verdict and any specific praise or complaint are not visible. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/charlies-angels-full-throttle/4014006.article)
- **The New York Times**, A. O. Scott (64/100, inferred): The page is inaccessible, so the critic’s verdict cannot be verified. The headline points to strained family ties, but the review’s specific praise or complaint is unavailable. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/27/movies/film-review-the-strained-family-ties-of-three-athletic-angels.html)
- **Slant Magazine**, Ed Gonzalez (1/4): Gonzalez finds the sequel soulless and overblown, a poor imitation of the original’s formula. He singles out Crispin Glover’s return as the Thin Man as the film’s one mitigating factor. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/charlies-angels-full-throttle/)
- **The AV Club**, Keith Phipps (25/100, inferred): Phipps finds the film shallow, repetitive, and more interested in seeming fun than being funny. He particularly criticizes its juvenile butt-pun sequence and frantic, hard-to-follow editing. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/charlies-angels-full-throttle-1798198647)
- **Radio Times**, Sloan Freer (1/5): Freer judges the sequel even more vapid than its predecessor. She criticizes its flashy effects, irritating cameos and tedious skits for failing to disguise the poor material. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-ki6mji/charlies-angels-full-throttle/)
- **Empire**, William Thomas (15/100, inferred): Thomas gives the sequel a strongly negative verdict, calling its direction and execution awful. He praises Liu and Diaz as watchable, while criticizing the inconsistent tone and sexism. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/charlie-angels-full-throttle-review/)
- **The Guardian**, Philip French (10/100, inferred): French condemns the film as an example of Hollywood’s lack of imagination and finds its frantic style deeply irritating. He singles out John Cleese’s cameo as especially embarrassing. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/News_Story/Critic_Review/Observer_review/0,,992290,00.html)
- **Eye for Film**, Angus Wolfe Murray (60/100, inferred): The critic finds the film a mindless but well-pitched romp, with more fizz than flavour. They praise its pop-video-influenced visuals and energetic stunts. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/charlies-angels-full-throttle-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray)

## Details

- **Director:** McG
- **Director:** McG
- **Screenplay:** John August, Cormac Wibberley, Marianne Wibberley
- **Story:** John August
- **Cinematography:** Russell Carpenter
- **Editor:** Wayne Wahrman, Tritia Espinoza
- **Music:** Edward Shearmur
- **Production design:** J. Michael Riva
- **Costume design:** Joseph G. Aulisi
- **Producer:** Drew Barrymore, Leonard Goldberg, Nancy Juvonen
- **Cast:** Cameron Diaz as Natalie Cook; Drew Barrymore as Dylan Sanders; Lucy Liu as Alex Munday; Demi Moore as Madison Lee; Bernie Mac as Jimmy Bosley; Justin Theroux as Seamus O'Grady; Robert Patrick as Ray Carter; Crispin Glover as Thin Man
- **Runtime:** 1h 46m
- **Certificate (CH):** 16
- **Release (Switzerland):** 25 June 2003
- **Genres:** Action, Adventure, Comedy
- **Budget:** $120 million
- **Box office:** $259 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oftSBgP7Hhk

## Where to watch in Switzerland

- Apple TV: rent CHF 4.50, hd
- Apple TV: buy CHF 14.00, hd

*Checked 2026-10-05.*

Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, TH, TR, UA, US, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Police Story* (1985): For physical comedy and action that lets us follow the danger.
- *Josie and the Pussycats* (2001): Another cheerful female trio, with sharper jokes about selling the fun.
- *Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown* (1988), Fi1m 84: For frantic ensemble comedy whose women remain more interesting than the commotion. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/women-on-the-verge-of-a-nervous-breakdown.md)
- *Kamikaze Girls* (2004): Two mismatched young women build a friendship amid determined visual excess.
- *Spy* (2015): For an action comedy that gives its leading woman proper jokes.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/charlies-angels-full-throttle