HOME |  CULT MOVIES | COMPETITIONS | ADVERTISE |  CONTACT US |  ABOUT US
 
 
 
Newest Reviews
American Fiction
Poor Things
Thunderclap
Zeiram
Legend of the Bat
Party Line
Night Fright
Pacha, Le
Kimi
Assemble Insert
Venus Tear Diamond, The
Promare
Beauty's Evil Roses, The
Free Guy
Huck and Tom's Mississippi Adventure
Rejuvenator, The
Who Fears the Devil?
Guignolo, Le
Batman, The
Land of Many Perfumes
Cat vs. Rat
Tom & Jerry: The Movie
Naked Violence
Joyeuses Pacques
Strangeness, The
How I Became a Superhero
Golden Nun
Incident at Phantom Hill
Winterhawk
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City
Maigret Sets a Trap
B.N.A.
Hell's Wind Staff, The
Topo Gigio and the Missile War
Battant, Le
Penguin Highway
Cazadore de Demonios
Snatchers
Imperial Swordsman
Foxtrap
   
 
Newest Articles
3 From Arrow Player: Sweet Sugar, Girls Nite Out and Manhattan Baby
Little Cat Feat: Stephen King's Cat's Eye on 4K UHD
La Violence: Dobermann at 25
Serious Comedy: The Wrong Arm of the Law on Blu-ray
DC Showcase: Constantine - The House of Mystery and More on Blu-ray
Monster Fun: Three Monster Tales of Sci-Fi Terror on Blu-ray
State of the 70s: Play for Today Volume 3 on Blu-ray
The Movie Damned: Cursed Films II on Shudder
The Dead of Night: In Cold Blood on Blu-ray
Suave and Sophisticated: The Persuaders! Take 50 on Blu-ray
Your Rules are Really Beginning to Annoy Me: Escape from L.A. on 4K UHD
A Woman's Viewfinder: The Camera is Ours on DVD
Chaplin's Silent Pursuit: Modern Times on Blu-ray
The Ecstasy of Cosmic Boredom: Dark Star on Arrow
A Frosty Reception: South and The Great White Silence on Blu-ray
You'll Never Guess Which is Sammo: Skinny Tiger and Fatty Dragon on Blu-ray
Two Christopher Miles Shorts: The Six-Sided Triangle/Rhythm 'n' Greens on Blu-ray
Not So Permissive: The Lovers! on Blu-ray
Uncomfortable Truths: Three Shorts by Andrea Arnold on MUBI
The Call of Nostalgia: Ghostbusters Afterlife on Blu-ray
Moon Night - Space 1999: Super Space Theater on Blu-ray
Super Sammo: Warriors Two and The Prodigal Son on Blu-ray
Sex vs Violence: In the Realm of the Senses on Blu-ray
What's So Funny About Brit Horror? Vampira and Bloodbath at the House of Death on Arrow
Keeping the Beatles Alive: Get Back
   
 
  6 Underground Team World: America Police
Year: 2019
Director: Michael Bay
Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Mélanie Laurent, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Ben Hardy, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco, Corey Hawkins, Lior Raz, Payman Madi, Yuri Kolokolnikov, Kim Kold, Lídia Franco, James Murray, Lukhanyo Bele, George Kareman, James Carroll Jordan, Ron Funches
Genre: Action, AdventureBuy from Amazon
Rating:  5 (from 1 vote)
Review: If there's a message One (Ryan Reynolds) would like to impart, it is that being dead is a pretty good state to be. As a billionaire who was presumed deceased in a light aircraft accident, he somehow found himself as a kind of secret agent with the perfect cover, for he was no longer of this world as far as everyone else was concerned. This was also the case with his team, the 6 Underground who were also enjoying the freedom of their "dead" status, because they could act with impunity, creating as much mayhem on a mission as they were able and well aware they were getting away with murder, literally in some cases. But a Middle Eastern dictator needs to be taken down now...

This entry in the slam bang Michael Bay action canon was snapped up by Netflix to stream on their internet service, another big name for them in 2019, though not one who was providing the same level of prestige as your Martin Scorsese or Alfonso Cuarón. This was a self-conscious crowd-pleaser, however, not targeted at the artier end of the market as the service's higher up the intellectual standing signings had been, more a Christmas present for those who simply wanted to vegetate in front of an easy-to-watch effort over the holiday period. Was that selling Bay short when he appeared to be taking this very seriously? It was a largely unserious picture, it had to be said.

But not quite a comedy, for while Reynolds was fed lines by his Deadpool screenwriters Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese that were supposed to be funny, there was a bizarre, sincere attack on the dictators of the world and a call for their oppressed countrymen to rise up and overthrow them. It came across as from a country that never got over the Iraq War - the United States, rather than actual Iraq which had a lot more reason to air grievances over how that had turned out, but the self-aggrandising belief that the Americans were the defenders of the Free World was all over 6 Underground, to the extent of suffocating much of the potential opportunities for amusement.

Reynolds could do this kind of flip, irreverent thing in his sleep, but was only as good as his material, which here was curiously whiny, his codenamed character always finding something to complain about amid the general mayhem. The rest of the team were "characters" or "types" rather than convincing as a crack squad of special forces, meaning this was yet another action flick to owe plenty to James Bond, though some may observe a Mission: Impossible vibe to how this played out. The script took its own sweet time in setting out what was the most basic of men (and women) on a mission plots, digressing to crowbar in another action sequence that lasted a good half hour of the opening act, if not longer, before it settled down for the anti-dictator business that comprised the bulk of the running time.

Say what you like about Bay, he was slick and could deliver a sleek-looking setpiece, but his tries at the more emotional scenes fell flat and dragged down what would have been tighter and more in keeping with his reputation if they had been excised. There followed a series of empty, hollow bits of narrative to link the reason we were here, the explosions and car chases and stunts, which may have had you pondering what Bay would have been like had he not had such a flair for the superficial. There was one memorable part where Reynolds used magnetism to create a weapon on a ship, which really demonstrated where all that reputed one hundred and fifty million dollar budget had gone (it was not really on the cast, as aside from the leading man they were vaguely recognisable but not that famous). Throw in sub-Tarantino pop culture references to taste, and stir till ready, that was, doze off in front of after your dinner and wake up when it gets too loud to sleep through. Music by Lorne Balfe.
Reviewer: Graeme Clark

 

This review has been viewed 2994 time(s).

As a member you could Rate this film

 
Review Comments (0)


Untitled 1

Login
  Username:
 
  Password:
 
   
 
Forgotten your details? Enter email address in Username box and click Reminder. Your details will be emailed to you.
   

Latest Poll
Which star probably has psychic powers?
Laurence Fishburne
Nicolas Cage
Anya Taylor-Joy
Patrick Stewart
Sissy Spacek
Michelle Yeoh
Aubrey Plaza
Tom Cruise
Beatrice Dalle
Michael Ironside
   
 
   

Recent Visitors
Mary Sibley
Enoch Sneed
Darren Jones
Mark Le Surf-hall
  Louise Hackett
Andrew Pragasam
Graeme Clark
  Desbris M
   

 

Last Updated: