EXTRACTION II has landed on Netflix and if you’ve already seen the first EXTRACTION from 2020, this sequel isn’t all that different. Sure, it’s set in a new location but Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth, THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER) is still being called upon to rescue the children of crime lords. Everyone who was associated with the first film — director Sam Hargrave, writer/producers Joe & Anthony Russo, and actors Golshifteh Farahani (EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS; PATERSON) and Adam Bessa (MOSUL) — are back. When I was thinking about what to write about the film, I thought that if the Russos can rehash their old script, I can rehash my old review. So, without further ado, here is my review of EXTRACTION that has been marked up for EXTRACTION II:

Who knew that Dhaka Georgia (the country, not the state) was the Medellin of south Asia the Caucasus? That’s what first-time director Sam Hargrave would like to have audiences believe as he presents the overcrowded city former Soviet satellite state under the haze drabness of an amber a blue-grey filter. Maybe the comparison to Medellin isn’t his fault though. His new latest Netflix movie, EXTRACTION EXTRACTION II, is based on the graphic novel, “Ciudad”, by Ande Parks and Joe & Anthony Russo – the very same Russos who directed four films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe including its biggest one to date, AVENGERS: ENDGAME, and who produced this film. The book’s title is taken from Paraguayan city of Ciudad del Este, which sits on the border with Brazil and is the largest city in the Triple Frontier region of South America, an area that has quite the reputation for smuggling, cocaine trafficking, money laundering and general lawlessness. Joe has now taken their story and moved the action to Bangladesh Georgia, presumably to be a more plausible fit for the film’s star and AVENGERS pal, Chris Hemsworth (Thor) main character who was, we learn here, once married to a woman from that country. What a coincidence. Here If you’re new to the films, Tyler Rake is a former Australian Air Service Regiment soldier-turned-black-market mercenary with a death wish. When Ovi Mahajan Jr. (Indian actor Rudhraksh Jaiswal) Davit Radiani (Georgian actor Tornike Bziava), the son brother of Indian Georgian crime boss Ovi Mahajan Sr. (Pankaj Tripathi) Zurab Radiani (Tornike Gogrichiani) – I’ve never heard of Indians following that naming custom but maybe some do now – gets kidnapped and is held for ransom by Amir Asif, Ovi Sr’s Bangladeshi counterpart, thrown in jail, Zurab takes matters into his own hands and arranges for Davit’s wife, Ketevan, and their two kids to occupy the adjoining cell so he can keep his eye on them. Ovi Sr’s right-hand man Ketevan’s sister, Mia (Olga Kurylenko, BLACK WIDOW; TO THE WONDER), Saju (Randeep Hooda) who just happens to be Tyler’s ex-wife, reaches out to Tyler’s handler, Nik Khan (Golshifteh Farahani, EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS; PATERSON), a mysterious new character played by Idris Elba (CATS) to get the boy her family back… for a hefty fee, of course. Tyler immediately heads for Dhaka Georgia where he rescues the boy family without so much as breaking into a sweat but then the mission goes pear-shaped very quickly. It seems that everyone in Dhaka Zureb’s private militia is after Tyler and now he has to rely on all his training and experience to get the boy family safely out of the country and back to Mumbai Zureb’s clutches.

EXTRACTION Like its predecessor, EXTRACTION II is a bit of mixed bag. The film is full of highly choreographed action scenes, which is not surprising given that Hargrave was the stunt coordinator on CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR and AVENGERS: ENDGAME and he was the stunt double for a number of Hollywood stars. This is where the film is the most entertaining and there are long and elaborate fight sequences that look like they’ve been shot in one continuous take. These days, thanks to technology, it’s hard to tell but let’s give Hargrave the benefit of the doubt. That being said, however, EXTRACTION EXTRACTION II is not in the same league as JOHN WICK when it comes to action and choreography, as much as Hargraves and Russo would probably like it to be so. The body count comes pretty close though, as Tyler, single-handedly along with his mercenary colleagues Nik Khan (Farahani) and her brother Yaz (Bessa), take down the Dhaka police force whole Nagazi crime operation, the Bangladeshi army and Asif’s Zureb’s militia, all in under just over 90 120 minutes. Unfortunately, where the film falters is its script, which absolutely makes no sense whatsoever is dumb AF. No one goes into a film like this expecting great writing but this plot has more holes in it than a hunk of Swiss cheese sulguni. (Okay, it’s not as holey as Swiss cheese is but that’s the best example of a Georgian cheese I could come up with.) And speaking of cheese, EXTRACTION EXTRACTION II has its tongue in its cheek far more than it deserves to be. Its numerous clichés and has a number of meta references (and I won’t reveal what they are) either fall flat or are completely underplayed.

Is this the start of a new This franchise much like is definitely trying to be the next JOHN WICK? with the addition of Kurylenko and Elba. The possibility of having more Tyler Rake adventures is definitely there as the film’s closing shot scene alludes to. If it is Once again, I hope Nik will have a bigger role because she’s a far more interesting character than Tyler is. I hope, too, that the writing will be better than this.

EXTRACTION EXTRACTION II is currently playing on Netflix. Whether you should watch it or not depends upon how bored you are. If you liked the first film, you’ll like this one too. It’s bigger, louder and has more explosions. If, however, you thought the first film was an okay way to pass time during covid, EXTRACTION II isn’t going to rock your world.

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