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Lead Critic for the site, as well as serving as an editor when needed.
Extraction was released yesterday, April 24, on Netflix worldwide. Boy, what a ride! Captain America’s stuntman for Civil War and Endgame, Sam Hargrave, has a great directorial debut and Chris Hemsworth’s first film post-Infinity Saga, is explosive while at the same time, heart wrenching. Very minor spoilers to follow so be aware.
The film is based on the comic Ciudad, written by the Russo Bros, Ande Parks, Fernando Leon Gonzalez and Eric Skillman. However, the film’s script was written solo by Joe Russo but the Russo’s and Hemsworth all produced the film as well. While Joe’s writing is great and the few comedic lines make their mark, the plot is almost similar to about every other action movie and that’s where it hurts the film. The film lags a bit in the second act and I almost wanted to quit watching but don’t let that stop you because it picks right back up. Hemsworth is heartbroken here and it helps add to his character.
Hemsworth’s Tyler Rake is a former SASR soldier, basically the Australian Special Forces, and his son has died of lymphoma and his wife left him. Tyler has virtually nothing to live for but chickens, money and Oxycontin. Rake almost seems like if Thor was just a normal dude and not a powerful god after the events of Infinity War and the events that kick off Endgame. The action, at times, overdoes the charm that the main characters bring to the screen. However, in my opinion, its worth it for what the film truly is. I really enjoyed it. Ovi Mahajan, played by Rudhraksh Jaiswal, has a great debut and his chemistry with Hemsworth is stellar. They work great together on screen and I hope to see more of him in Hollywood. David Harbour was okay in the film, granted he’s only in about two scenes and Golshifteh Farahani, who plays Nik Khan, is a great counterpart to Hemsworth. Randeep Hooda, who plays Saju, a man working for Ovi’s father, is another great counterpart to Hemsworth and can hold his own in their scenes together.
Now, the stunt work is insane and the action set pieces are reminiscent of Michael Bay’s Transformers franchise and Keanu Reeves’ John Wick films with a slight touch of Sam Mendes’ 1917. Unlike most action films being set in the United States, England or some even in the Middle East, this one was set primarily in Bangladesh. This was a refreshing vibe to bring to the genre and in my opinion, breathes fresh air to it. I mainly want to speak on an insane car chase in the middle of the film. As soon as Rake has rescued the kid from the opposing drug lord, they get interrupted in their getaway and end up going back into the city of Dhaka. The scene that follows is almost taken directly out of the playbook of 1917. It seemed to have been shot in one take and the camera goes around everything, instead of just your typical cut here and cut there, that was great. That sequence was probably my favorite of the film.
Overall, I really enjoyed this film and plan to watch it again soon. The door seemed to have been left open for a sequel so here’s hoping. It ended as I thought it would and then at the literal last second, made my dad and I do a double take. Further, I highly recommend this film for any action fan and anyone who likes watching tough guys beat the crap out of people and the occasional heart wrenching here and there.
4.5/5 stars.
Have you seen Extraction yet? If so, what are your thoughts? Also, are you excited to see more of the Russo’s AGBO films in the future? Let us know down in the comments and stay right here at TCS for more film reviews and recommendations!
Lead Critic for the site, as well as serving as an editor when needed.
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