Extraction 2 drops you straight back into Tyler Rakes world and this sequel does what it needs too do but doesnt really blow me away like I hoped it would after seeing how good the first movie was. Chris Hemsworth returns as the nearly indestructable merc, the Russo brothers are back writing it and Sam Hargrave directs again, you can tell Netflix threw serious cash at this thing because the action looks fantasic, the set is insane and that whole 21 minute one shot everyone keeps talking about is actualy pretty damn impressive to watch even tho you can spot all the hidden cuts once you start paying atention to the camera tricks they used, I have been working on a video project using this two movies as sample so I notice more from going through the timeline. The story picks up right were the first one left off, Tyler somehow survived getting shot multiple times and falling into that river which I mean come on but atleast they show us how instead of just pretending it never happend, he gets rescued and spends months in a coma before waking up to start rehab and the dude is not even fully healed when he takes another job. This time its personal tho because its his exwifes sister whos stuck in some Georgian prison, not Georgia like the state but the country over in that part of the world, her gangster husband is locked up in there with her and there two kids because he wants to keep his family close to him while doing time so they basically prisoners too and Tyler has too break in and get them out. The prison break scene is absolutly wild, we get that crazy moment were his arm catches fire, yeah the cover scene for this post and he just keeps fighting and punching people while hes literaly burning which looked insane but if Im being honest the first movie had tighter action overall, the gun fights were sharper and the whole thing felt more intense and focused.
- IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12263384/
- Platform: NETFLIX
Rottentomatoes Rating
Source
This one has plenty of violence and crazy stunts but something about it just doesnt hit the same way as the original did. Theres also this whole subplot with the womans teenage son who worships his criminal father even tho the guys a complete piece of shit, the kid makes dumb decision after dumb decision and I spent half the movie wanting someone to smack some sense into him because he keeps screwing things up for everyone trying to save his ass. The kids naivety gets people killed and he still doesnt get it, even after they almost blow him and his little sister up with a minigun from a helicopter he still runs back to his uncle who is the main bad guy and Im sitting there thinking what the hell is wrong with you they just tried too murder your whole family. That character was my biggest problem with the movie because I couldnt feel sorry for him no matter how hard the script wanted me too, if anything I wanted Tyler to leave him behind and just save the mom and little sister who actualy deserved it. The villian himself is fine I guess, hes hateable enough but nothing special or memorable, just another angry crime lord with an accent seeking revenge and we dont really get villians like Alan Rickman or Jeremy Irons anymore in these action movies which is a shame. Idris Elba shows up in like two scenes at the begining and end but barely does anything which felt like such a waste of his talent, I kept waiting for him to come back and do something cool but nope he just sets up the sequel and thats it.
Source
Source
The action is were this movie shines tho and that prison break sequence is one of the best action scenes I have seen in years, we talking John Wick levels, maybe one of the best in any action movie period. Tyler goes into the prison, gets the family out but they get spotted and a security breach gets announced, all prisoners loose with rioting everywhere while they are still trying to escape through the prison, he is shooting guys with pistols then grabbing machine guns then using knives to stab people in the stomach like five times, he is hitting guys with pipes and shields, his arm catches on fire and he is punching people while burning, they fight there way through the yard into this storage facility area were they steal a car and it all looks like one continuous shot. The camera follows them as they drive through this chase with motorcycles and other vehicles shooting at them through the forests, Tyler uses a grenade launcher to blow stuff up, they get forced out of the vehicles and run for cover in a nuclear power plant were they jump onto a moving train, he grabs a heavy machine gun and starts shooting, gunmen get out of a helicopter and board the train for some brutal fights inside and outside the moving train, its FKN INSANE!!!, like all that was not enough more bad guys show up on dirt bikes and he takes them out too, the lady gets some good hits in aswell stabbing a guy real nasty, then Tyler climbs on top of the train with a minigun and shoots down the last helicopter before they finaly escape. Its exhausting too watch in the best way possible and the choreography is so smooth you feel like your right there in the action, problem is the movie peaks too early because nothing after that sequence comes close too matching that intensity, its like the movie blew its load halfway through and couldnt build back up too that level again.
Source
Source
The rest of the action is still solid, theres a good sequence later at these towers were bad guys show up with helicopters and miniguns shooting up the whole floor but the truth is that the body cant keep producing dopamine indefinetly. Tyler and the team have to fight there way out and it all feels smaller after that massive prison break. The final fight with the main villian is fine but kinda short, they fight in this old church and Tyler eventualy kills him but I wanted more, I wanted a longer brutal beatdown or something more creative instead of just another standard fist fight, they do use hammers and hacksaws and nails during the fight which was cool but still felt rushed. The ending wraps things up okay, Tyler and Nik get arrested by Austrian authorities and end up in prison, Tylers exwife shows up to visit him there and they finaly get some closure about there son who died, she tells him that the kids last thoughts werent about Tyler leaving but about how brave his dad was going too help people and Tyler gets emotional which was actualy a nice moment, Hemsworth sells it well and you can see the weight lift off his character. Then theres the sequel setup were they get taken out of prison and Idris Elba comes back and recruits Tyler for another mission saying he wants him too meet someone, so obviously theres gonna be a third movie if this one does good numbers on Netflix.
I had a decent time watching Extraction 2 and theres alot too like here, Hemsworth is great in the role and proves again hes a legit action star, the 21 minute one shot sequence is worth watching the movie for alone, the camera work is impressive and most of the supporting cast does good work especialy the actress playing Tylers partner Nick who kicks ass without being annoying about it. But if Im being completly real with you the first Extraction was better overall, this one feels like they played it safe instead of trying too top what made the original so awesome, the villian is forgetable, that teenage kid character almost ruins the movie for me with his stupid decisions and the pacing drags in spots were the drama doesnt work as well as it should. Its still a solid action movie and definitly better then alot of the crap that came out that year, way better then something like Thor Love and Thunder movie Hemsworth did I know its mostly a comedy but this Extraction movies are up there with his best Thor movies, but it doesnt reach the heights of the first one or even come close too matching John Wick, just that scene at the prison. I would give Extraction 2 a 7 out of 10, its good enough too recomend if you liked the first one and want more Tyler Rake doing his thing, just dont expect it too blow you away or reinvent the wheel because it plays things pretty safe for a sequel.
#skiptvads, #inleo, #hive, #extraction, #sequel, #hemsworth, #action, #netflix, #prison, #tyler, #rake, #russo, #hargrave, #fight, #violence, #stunts, #helicopter, #minigun, #thriller, #mercenary, #rescue, #georgia, #revenge, #choreography, #shooting, #explosion, #combat, #runtime