Extraction 2

Chris Hemsworth returns as battle-hardened mercenary Tyler Rake in the fast-paced action sequel, Extraction 2. After the grievous wounds he sustained at the end of the previous film are attended to, Rake plans to retire in a secluded house in the Austrian mountains. But when a stranger (played by Idris Elba) appears at his door unexpectedly, Rake is recruited for one more mission: to save his ex-wife’s sister and her children from her criminal husband.

From here, the narrative explodes into a wild action outing, moving from one insane set piece to the next, pausing only to take a breath to deliver story beats. From a violent prison break to a shootout on a moving train and nail-biting fight on a skyscraper’s glass ceiling, there’s no shortage of blockbuster spectacle to be found here. Returning director Sam Hargrave makes superb use of camera movement to bring audiences into the frantic chaos of each scene. In one extended sequence, the camera swoops, zooms, and spins its way through a 21-minute one-shot (which took approximately 28 days to film, according to Hargraves), to blistering effect. The choreography and stunt work are also exceptionally well done. This film was made with the big screen in mind – which makes it a little disappointing that it can’t be experienced in theatres. 

Less successful, however, is the screenplay (once again penned by the Russo brothers, alongside Andre Parks). The plot of Extraction 2 is as paper-thin as a film of its genre gets. The story that’s there acts more as an excuse for gigantic action scenes, rather than the force that drives the flick forward. It’s in the writers’ attempt to add in themes of family that things stumble: offering nothing more than surface-level character development, the script doesn’t make effective use of its only ideas. Whenever these worn-out plot points appear, they only serve to get in the way of the excitement that viewers came to see.

Hemsworth’s magnetic charisma makes him the ideal action hero star, with the bombastic scenes and jaw-dropping camerawork cementing Hargrave’s status as a filmmaker. Extraction 2 is an enjoyable and fun outing, even if its bland writing has a habit of interrupting the action.

Andrew Murray

Extraction 2 is released on Netflix on 16^th June 2023.

Watch the trailer for Extraction 2 here: