Out of the Fire

Who gives a crap about a more sophisticated script – that’s not my issue here – but this is merely two hours of systematically emptying bottomless clips without any display of emotion whatsoever. But what about the praises sung on this site about the 15-minute “continuous take”?  Well, when you make clever use of cuts (by zooming into macro details for an instant, right in the face) and unnoticeable dissolves, you can fill an entire feature-length film with such takes (just ask Sam Mendes), though it is of course all an illusion, even though it looks cool. To sum up, this is nothing new under the sun, just another yawn-inducing flick no one will remember three months from now. (29/04/2020)

Extraction has an indisputably significant place on the notional chart of trends in the action genre. This dot chart, marked out in one plane by unbridled low-budget action movies with athletic, ready-for-anything actors and in the opposite by constrained Hollywood big-budget productions with stars, shows us in the points the emphasis on action as an attraction and the evocation of the wow effect by the physical dimension. In this definition, however, Extraction is not an essential or revolutionary milestone. Rather, the very fact that it appeared on that notional chart further reinforces the hope that better times are ahead for the action genre in Hollywood. Sam Hargrave emerges from this as a good and likable apprentice of the 87eleven stunt school and stands somewhere between his masters Chad Stahelski and David Leitch. But Hemsworth is neither Keanu Reeves nor Tom Cruise, so he obviously does not have years of training or personal commitment under his belt. Therefore, his director and choreographer have to come up with gimmicks such as one seeming long shot that is digitally stitched together, which, with its obvious transitions, only brings to mind the ambitions of filmmakers from the lower budget categories, but who gain greater fondness through their greater tenacity despite the production conditions (in, for example, Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning) or honest craftsmanship (such as in Jailbreak). And that’s not to mention projects that still remain unsurpassed today, where physical action and directorial craft achieve the ideal synergy, us as in The Raid 2. ____ Extraction is a fine contribution to the genre that shows Netflix’s potential, but also its real face as a video rental company. And that will perhaps remain the primary benefit of this project. Netflix is surprisingly consistent in bringing the schizophrenic “VoD video rental” label to mind. Although it will never achieve the pampered selection and community function that carefully curated autonomous video rental shops offered, it needs a regular supply of shiny new products, following the example of the major chains. In the best case, they will attract viewers to the more out-of-the-way sections, where they will discover not unique gems, but a bunch of other genre flicks that will compel them not to cancel their subscriptions. So, if you find yourself in these nooks and crannies because of Netflix’s recommendations, have a look at some of the films mentioned above. However, after these years of shakycams and CGI colouring books that completely lack a physical dimension, we can once again look forward to the coming development. It even makes one want to talk about the renaissance of the action genre. (16/05/2020)

Crazier version of Man on Fire, in other words another movie made by a “stuntman/director" where it is going without saying that shaky camera and frantic editing are a course of the action genre. From the same department as The Raid and Wick movies. Not in terms of the style of action, the type of movie or the uncompromising rawness, but because when watching action scenes you will inevitably delighted to say several time “I've never seen anything like this before, but I have always wanted to". You may not say it as often (basically twice; in a one-shot eleven-minute action hell while watching slums and rogues being beaten) as when watching the second Raid movie or John Wick sequel, but still more often than when watching most of the action movies from the last decades (exceptionalmovie ). On top of that, frequent action is so diverse that you won’t become bored of it. Straightforwardness does justice to this movie, the characters are sketched but functional, emotions work well, it simply does the job. The outcome is a genre move that knows what it wants to be and to who is the viewer. The only minor imperfection is a little bit too much sad, gloomy self-questioning, a too yellow toning and a rather open ending. (24/04/2020)

Little buggers. Chris Hemsworth beats Indian kids! With top-notch action scenes driven by a straightforward plot from an unknown comic book, Extraction benefits mainly from the mad verve of director Sam Hargrave, who didn’t hesitate to tie himself to the top of a car with a camera to get the desired result. And really the one-shot car chase in the Benz through a hostile Dhaka makes the film worth watching again and again. Kids with Kalashnikovs on every street corner, dirt, blood and slit throats stay the course set by Wick. The future of action movies is not rosy, it’s blood red! (24/04/2020)

After Triple Frontier, another likeably uncompromising and gritty action flick from Netflix. The choreography and direction are so predatory and imaginative that there are several scenes that I wanted to rewatch immediately after the credits rolled, and I did. The story is simple, but it also manages to surprise with one unusual, yet logical alliance in particular, and the quiet ending didn't bother me at all, quite the opposite – I felt like I needed a breather. I trusted Chris Hemsworth with everything. (25/04/2020)