I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: if it makes dollars, it makes sequels. That doesn’t directly apply to the streaming model, but the gist is the same if you substitute viewership and internet chatter for dollars. The result is the same, too. The larger the viewership and the louder the clamoring on the interwebs, the more likely a sequel will get made. “Extraction 2” is a victim of its own success, losing much of the grit and uniqueness of its predecessor and replacing it with bigger and louder action set pieces. The result is an unnecessary sequel that feels more like action concepts surrounded by a pointless narrative who’s only purpose is to get us to the next sequence. It’s the accidental success story, a “John Wick” sequel without a charismatic lead and a world worth building to keep you engaged even when things begin to get stretched too thin.
“Extraction 2” suffers from the “This time, it’s personal” sequilitis formula, delivering some high octane action sequences and little else worth remembering.
Sam Hargrave returns to the directors chair, along with Joe Russo penning the script once again. (Joe’s brother Anthony Russo is a producer.) “Extraction 2” picks up right where the first film left off. Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth) miraculously survives his injuries and is nursed back to health over several months. Isolated in a remote cabin in the woods in “retirement,” Rake is visited by a mysterious man offering him a job that only the legendary Rake can handle. Though he rejects the offer at first, he takes the job because the extraction target is his ex-wife’s sister and her two children. They are trapped in a Turkish prison at the request of their maniacal crime boss father, and Rake and his team must infiltrate the heavily guarded prison and escape unseen. Of course, nothing goes to plan, and not only do they end up killing the father in their escape, but they are now pursued by his even more maniacal brother who is hellbent on killing them all as retribution for the death of his kin. It’s now up to Rake and his team (Yaz and Nik….don’t worry, I didn’t remember them either) to get the family to safety before it’s too late.
Hargrave is an exceptional action director, and “Extraction 2” demonstrates his incredible skill behind the camera. The shaky cam may get a little exhausting at times, but his desire to push the limits of single shot sequences shine brightest in this sequel. If you loved the 12 minute one shot of the first one, then a 20 minute single take action sequence will be right up your alley. Story be damned, the action is almost worth the ride in these moments and is sure to satisfy even most addicted action adrenaline junkies. Brutal kills, clever camera work, over the top chases are all encompassed in this big “Extraction 2” sequence, and it really makes you wish this kind of craft was applied to a better movie. Hargrave knows why you’re here and tries to deliver on as many action thrills as he possibly can, and the smart camera tricks and bold vision really comes through big in this one.
The same can’t be said for Russo’s script, who once again shows that he peaked with Marvel Studios‘ “Avengers: Endgame” and doesn’t know how to write anything else outside of “The Gray Man“ variants. Sure, you could argue that “Extraction 2” is based on a graphic novel and he’s adapting the source material, but he’s adapting it poorly and in the most overwritten and boring way possible. “Extraction 2” doesn’t have a single shred of meat on its bones, and even worse doesn’t have a single character worth investing in or rooting for. This includes Hemsworth’s Rake, who went from tortured soldier on a mission to a quippy action hero overnight.
I get it, Hemsworth is charming as hell, but not everything needs the comedic timing of “Thor: Ragnorok” nor does it need to tap into the 80s action star who’s take no shit attitude comes with a stogie and a bad ass one liner. “Extraction 2” isn’t quite that egregious, but whatever grit and emotional complexity that was there to be mined from its predecessor is completely absent in this sequel.
With no one to care about and nothing that matters, when “Extraction 2” isn’t dazzling with action set pieces, all you can here is Netflix counting their money from their own extraction cash grab. I don’t need action films to have deep introspective meanings in some kind of Oscar contention, but I do need them to mean SOMETHING other than “car go boom!” and every answer to every question is simply “because, reasons.” For kind of this action to be engaging, the audience needs to have some skin in the game and care about what’s happening and what our protagonists are doing. “Extraction 2” adds nothing but explosions and violent deaths, all of which are completely meaningless as no character is developed enough to care if they live or die. Take Yaz (Adam Bessa) and Nik (Golshifteh Farahani) for example. Two characters who were a little more than a blink and you miss it additions in the first one who are now propped up to be integral to the story with a ton of screen time. Both are suppose to be the family Rake never had, and are somehow suppose to drum up some kind of emotional connection between all parties.
But “Extraction 2” is so light on character development that it took me the better part of 20 minutes to even remember who these two characters were. And then, it took me almost the entire film to understand why they mattered so much to THIS story. These are the kinds of things Russo’s script seems incapable of relating to audiences, something that seems to permeate most of his scripts recently and makes his films inaccessible. It’s great that Hargrave is behind the camera bringing bold visionary action to life, but what good is Hemsworth as Rake if you literally don’t care about anything he’s doing? I know this sounds foolish to harp on the narrative of an action film, but it is so void of purpose it’s hard to forgive even when the action of “Extraction 2” dazzles. It all feels incomplete and hollow, never able to pair why things are happening with what is actually happening. Instead of feeling unique and boundary pushing, everything feels cynical and money driven, and the “ya, I think we got a franchise” ending solidifies where the heart of “Extraction 2” truly lies.
Outside of an awesome prison break scene and a pretty solid follow up on the streets and rooftops of a high rise building, I cannot recall a single other thing that happens in “Extraction 2.” A smart idea is shown to be clearly overtaken by the Netflix machinery, and the film suffers greatly for it. I will certainly give it credit for its solid action as a testament to Hargrave’s skill, but there’s little else to be enjoyed here and while “Extraction 2” may be bigger and bolder, it is not better.
I have no doubt that we’ll get another one of these, but frankly I think we should extract something else, because “Extraction 2” feels more like extortion than a rescue mission.
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Stars
“Extraction 2” is now streaming on Netflix. You can watch the trailer below.
