DUBAI: It’s hard to imagine anyone was massively upset when Chris Hemsworth’s mercenary-with-a-heart Tyler Rake appeared to have died at the end of 2020’s “Extraction.” It was a decent action-thriller, sure, but it certainly didn’t seem to be crying out for a sequel.
That’s not what the money men thought though. And so “Extraction 2” kicks off with a ‘Directing For Dummies’-style montage which sees Rake’s not-quite-dead body patched up and flown to a private hospital in Dubai where he’s made whole again — after some unconvincing attempts to insert some jeopardy into that arc by having Rake question whether he’ll ever be able to function as a soldier again. Spoiler: he will.
What it takes to get him to that point is a visit from Idris Elba (playing an unnamed recruiter acting on behalf of Rake’s ex-wife, whose sister and her children are locked in a Georgian prison with the sister’s abusive mob-boss husband. Rake is hired to break them out.) Elba, even though he’s clearly phoning it in at around 30 percent of his potential star wattage, is still comfortably the best performer in the cast.
That’s symptomatic of the main problem with “Extraction 2.” As an action-thriller it’s OK, in that it’s action-packed and often thrilling, with some gripping set pieces and nicely choreographed (if occasionally clunky, particularly when Hemsworth isn’t directly involved) fight scenes, but writer Joe Russo and director Sam Hargrave want the audience to feel something beyond an adrenaline rush. And that’s a mistake.
The 40 minutes or so of the movie that aren’t all about the action drag interminably for two reasons: the writing and the acting. The attempts to explore the tragedy at the heart of Rake’s separation from his ex are particularly egregious and must surely pique the interest of whoever’s putting together the nominations for next year’s Razzies. Hemsworth has talents, for sure, but portraying genuine emotion other than stoic determination or wisecracking cockiness doesn’t appear to be one of them, at least on this evidence.
This is one of the more cynical franchise expansions of recent times (and yes, that’s saying something), building on an already wrapped-up story in a way that doesn’t add anything to that story. And yet, as the ending makes clear, “Extraction 3” is already on the way, unstoppable as Tyler Rake, who will, coincidentally, also create enormous messes if there’s enough money involved.
