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Zero time Tony Award winner • Production Assistant • Serial rewatcher
Since the first trailer for 6 Underground dropped a few months ago I’ve been anticipating the latest Michael Bay flick. I love an action film and especially an action film that takes place in multiple countries.
Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool) leads a team of ‘ghosts’, on a mission to take down Rovach Alimov, the tyrannous dictator of Turgistan and replace him with his democracy-loving brother, Murat Alimov, who is being held captive in Japan. Very Man in the Iron Mask without them being twins. Each member of the team is chosen based on his/her special skills. They’ve all faked their own death in the hopes of erasing their past and starting fresh. Reynolds, the leader goes by the name One and he’s the billionaire of the group. Following him, respectively, is Two/C.I.A agent (Mélanie Laurent), Three/the Hitman (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), Four/the Skywalker (Ben Hardy), Five/the Doctor (Adria Arjona), Six/the Driver (Dave Franco) and Seven/the Sniper (Corey Hawkins).
As soon as the film opens (after a brief introductory voice-over by Reynolds) you’re immediately immersed into a high-speed Italian car chase through the streets of Florence featuring a dash of parkour atop the Duomo. (Do not attempt on your next European vacation, kids.) Another thing that you’re introduced to in the first fifteen minutes of the film is the Deadpool-esque humor that Ryan Reynolds effortlessly perfects. It’s nothing worthy of a belly laugh, but you’ll let out a chuckle. (I found the humor during the opening scene the funniest, but that’s just the Italian in me showing.) As the film progresses, amongst the coup at hand you’re also given a glimpse into the lives of the other ‘ghosts’ and how some of them came to be involved in this vigilante group. All of it ultimately leading up to the planned extraction and swap of the two brothers.
It’s a fairly easy action film and I mean that in the sense that it is easy to follow. There are time jumps from the past to the present, but those are explicitly stated on the screen and the plot line doesn’t feature any major plot twists or surprise factors. And maybe that’s a good thing, sometimes you just want to watch a movie and be entertained, not have to think and guess the whole time.
I’ll admit, the film has a sprinkle of a been there done that feel to it. That doesn’t mean it’s not worth the watch, it just fails to push the envelope a bit. However, this movie could open up to a potential sequel. More missions and ultimately more room to expand on the characters. I might be alone here in saying this, but I wouldn’t hate that idea.
The last thing I want to mention is the soundtrack. It gave the action scenes an extra oomph and I can’t remember the last time I was that fixated on the background music of an action film. It kinda made me want to listen to Muse.
Would I watch the film again? Absolutely. I watched it twice before I wrote this review to make sure my opinion was the same. My overall rating is 8.5/10.
After you watch the film let us know your thoughts @TheCinemaSpot.
Zero time Tony Award winner • Production Assistant • Serial rewatcher
