I wrote in my review of 2019's "John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum" that the plot got in the way, breaking up a series of ridiculous moments of action with talk of a grander mythology that is never explored. It cheats the viewer and, although I missed out on that obligatory fourth one, Netflix's "Extraction 2" is exactly what I was talking about. Less "talky talky" and more "boom boom." And boy does this go boom real good.
"Extraction 2" is less a ballet and more a blunt instrument, a showcase for film making where all that matters is explosions, muscles, guns and bigger guns. Plot doesn't so much matter as does what looks good in the brief few seconds of "autoplay" on the app. In other words, it is a perfect followup to the 2020 original; it's not just "more of the same," it's also just "more."
We get another one of those terrific "one shot" action sequences, starting with a jailbreak to a train derailment and, if anyone accuses me of spoilers, words couldn't describe how much fun it is to witness. In fact I'm sure even the script itself undersold it. The rest of the picture never reaches the delirious heights of that one (very long) scene, but considering those "other" moments include a fight in a gym that uses gym equipment, rest assured that the technical skills are all top-notch stuff.
Chris Hemsworth reprises his role of Tyler Rake, an injured mercenary who's told he's "retired" in the first five minutes, which means the opposite happens. A mysterious stranger (played by the always-dependable Idris Elba, who probably just stumbled on-set while filming his nihilistic "Luther: The Fallen Sun" for the streamer) gives him a job to rescue his ex-wife's sister Ketevan (Tinatin Dalakishvili) from a prison in Georgia. It is a place where women are weak and subordinate to men, who are violent and misogynist in the name of god. (And if you'll notice my lack of capitalization there, you can tell where I fall on the subject, but I digress.)
The villains, a pair of brothers played by Tornike Gogrichiani and Tornike Bziava, respectively, run the Nagazi, a gang with "every politician in the pocket" or something like that, and they've gotten Ketevan's son confused with their macho bigotry. This could be a stereotype of either the country or the USA state (ba dum tis) but I of course mean the country, so all this could be labeled as xenophobic and/or sexist, probably both and more; I can't stomach how Hollywood always shows anyone who isn't white is either poor and unkempt or Americanized. This is something I cannot defend and has been a problem since the first moving picture show was shown.
Imperfections aside, there is an undercurrent of intelligence here, and to dismiss this as just savage trash would be the wrong way to ultimately interpret this: the antagonists are an metaphor for toxic masculinity. Of course, the film's answer to combat this is more angry men, but damn were the filmmakers close to something special here.
