Almost three years after the original movie, we will be following top-operative Tyler Rake on another action-packed mission. You don’t need to know anything about the original to fully enjoy this sequel. Extraction 2 is an action movie featuring truly stunning fights and shootouts. The last time I’ve seen something on the same level as this was almost ten years ago in The Raid: Redemption. After the obligatory intro telling us what’s going on, the movie throws us in the thick of it. What follows is a superbly choreographed and paced action sequence that will blow your mind.
This single-take scene lasts for about 20 minutes and it’s absolutely bonkers. If you play video games, you might be familiar with these sorts of intense fights and shootouts. Extraction 2 takes these scenes and pushes them to a whole new level. All the while remaining as brutal and nasty as it can be. Raw and realistic, the action at the same time feels natural and larger-than-life. For example, John Wick features violence and action that feels too stylized and sanitized. I don’t like those sorts of movies. And to this day I’ve only watched the first movie in the franchise and not a single one of the sequels.
Speaking of originals and sequels, in some aspects Extraction 2 is better than the original movie, Extraction. While there’s no exotic and sun-drenched atmosphere from the first part, the action is just unrelenting. They knew what worked and what didn’t in the original and with that experience, they just stepped up every possible category. Chris Hemsworth was amazing as Tyler Rake once again, offering a new breed of an action movie hero. Golshifteh Farahani as Nik was also great and I loved her fight scenes. Finally, we got a real fight between a highly skilled female operative and ruthless bad guys.
Rake barely survived his last mission and now he’s living the quiet life in the Austrian countryside. However, he soon realizes that the situation is untenable and accepts a mission to retrieve his ex-wife’s sister and her family from Georgia. The sister’s husband is one of two brothers running the biggest crime operation in that country. And he placed the family in a prison cell, right next to him. Rake knows that he won’t be able to do this alone, so he calls on Nik and Yaz to help him. What happens next is utter chaos…
I know that Extraction 2 just came out but I have to say that I’m already excited about the upcoming sequel. I mean, you know they’re going to make it, the only question is will we have to wait another three years to get it? The sense of escalation is my biggest takeaway from this movie. That sense of progression where one good fight is followed by an even better one. And then bullets start flying, people start throwing hand grenades, and you’re just dazzled by everything that’s happening on the screen.
And then a fucking helicopter starts spraying bullets everywhere. Juicy, perfectly edited, and shot, these scenes are always good for another viewing. I also want you to pay attention to the sound editing. It was so fucking good. From the bullets hitting the armored car and sounding like someone was throwing snowballs over explosions to hand-to-hand combat, everything was top-notch. Perhaps the only weakness this movie had were the bad guys. Although there was that chunky bad guy towards the end…
Finally, if you’re looking for movies like Extraction 2, I highly recommend you start with Athena. Following a riot in a French city, it also features stunning single-take action sequences. The Nest is also a good choice, matching the mood in Extraction 2 perfectly. And if you’re in the mood for something with a bit more grittiness, Mosul, based on actual events, will provide it in spades. Plus, it’s also available on Netflix.
Director: Sam Hargrave
Writers: Joe Russo, Ande Parks, Anthony Russo
Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Golshifteh Farahani, Adam Bessa, Tornike Gogrichiani, Tornike Bziava
Fun Facts: The single take action sequence that happens early on in Extraction 2, took 5 months to rehearse and an almost a month to shoot. The sequence is 20 minutes long.
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IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12263384/
