Extraction 2 Review - Continues The Superior Action Saga With Mid-Storytelling

Sam Hargreave is back with Chris Hemsworth in Extraction 2. Following the similar pattern of Extraction (2020), Extraction 2 continues to roar in the action zone, but just like its predecessor, it also suffers from weak writing and an emotionally poor plot. Extraction became quite popular in India in 2020 since many people saw it during the lockdown and had no other option. That wasn't the only reason, though. Netflix, OTT platforms, and big action films coming to the OTT were new and exciting things back then. Now, we have become habitual to all that stuff, so a film has to be really good to work big time. Extraction 2 is a faithful sequel, if not great. It serves what fans seek, and therefore it can't be blamed for being loyal to its fanbase and overlooking critics.Taking off from Extraction, the film begins with the scene of Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth) being wounded and falling into the river. Since he is our hero, he cannot die, so he survives the bullet in his neck. I don't know how it's possible in this universe, but he did. In the recovery process, a nameless fella (Idris Elba) visits him and offers him a new assignment. Tyler, along with Nik Kahn (Golshifteh Farahani) and Yaz Kahn (Adam Bessa), fly to Austria to rescue a Georgian gangster's family from prison. There he picks up a little girl, a woman, and her son, who are being chased by a mercenary named Zurab (Tornike Gogrichiani). Tyler has to save the family from Zurab and his men and find a way out of the country.One good thing about the Extraction series is that it stays true to its genre. If it calls itself an action drama, then it stays an action flick throughout the film. Other times, we hardly see an action film being action for two hours as several elements like romance, drama, family, betrayal, and others do happen in between. Extraction 2 is about the action getting bigger and more thrilling. Extraction 1 had a long one-take action piece between Chris and Randeep Hooda, while Extraction 2 has an even longer sequence of Tyler taking on many mercenaries in different places. That sequence lasts for about 20 minutes or so, and it is made to look like a one-take scene, even though we have a few deceptive explosions to fool our eyes. It might be a one-take scene too; I don't know. One cannot take his eyes off that scene; it's so good. It's breathtaking!Chris Hemsworth is gritty as Tyler Rake, just as was expected. He is a badass hero with an emotional backdrop that is still not well explored. In Extraction 2, we have a slightly better introduction of those characters, but it's nothing that accessible. He is amazing in action scenes and delivers a fine punch of machoism. The gorgeous looks of Golshifteh Farahani continue to mesmerise you, and she also kicks some a***. The coordination between Chris and Golshifteh is flawless, and I'd love to see them get a little romantic in the future. Am I asking for too much or what? Adam Bessa passes the time well, Olga Kurylenko and Tinatin Dalakishvili are okay, and Idris Elbai is a surprise package in a cameo that might get bigger soon. Tornike Gogrichiani presents a deadly villain who is well supported by Levan Saginashvili.Extraction 2 lacks depth in scripting and storytelling. The screenplay is pacy but has no elements related to writing. Of course, you cannot write action; you have to design it as a spectacle, and that's not a writer's job. Greg Baldi's cinematography in that one-take action sequence will blow your mind. The camera follows every moment of the characters; it moves ahead with them, even capturing wide frames. It rides in a car, goes on top, sneaks out of explosions, and then goes on a trip on a train. How difficult are all things to imagine, but they made them possible, and how fantastically. The dialogues have some crispness too. I mean, "Do you trust me?" has been a cliche, but what new can we get in an answer? "Should I not?" is what we get here. Sam Hargrave creates a sequel that lives up to the fan mania and nothing else. Extraction 2 raises the bar of action for the franchise, but I wish they had raised the standard of the script too. Enjoy the action and forgive the writing.