'Extraction II' Review: Stellar Sequel Ups the Ante and Body Count

Three years ago, Chris Hemsworth made his Netflix debut with Extraction, a film about an Australian special forces soldier who’s tasked with rescuing the son of a drug dealer from a rival drug dealer. Written by the Russo brothers (Avengers: Endgame) and directed by Sam Hargrave (fight/stunt coordinator, Captain America: Civil War), the Marvel veterans turned the quippy god of thunder, played by Chris Hemsworth, into the deadly serious protagonist Tyler Rake as he piles up bodies across Bangladesh with equal parts precision and anger—one kill gets intimately close up as Rake sees a sharp gardening tool resembling his name protruding from the floor and uses it to put through a kidnappers eye without cutting away. Ouch!

While not reaching the heights of modern graphic action films like Brawl in Cell Block 99 or The Raid, Extraction was a welcome introduction to Hemsworth as an action star in a similar way The Bourne Identity was to Matt Damon in 2003. Towering over everybody he’s onscreen with at 6’3″ and carrying 215 pounds of muscle as Thor, Hemsworth was a perfect choice to try his hand at the gory and balletic action sequences that many filmmakers are attempting now with the success of the John Wick franchise.

For those who don’t remember the events of the first film, Extraction II recaps Rake’s extensive rehab and recovery from being extensively wounded in an unnecessary opening that tries to explain how he’s still alive after being shot through the neck and falling off of a bridge. However, these movies work best when they don’t try to overexplain how our hero is indestructible (notice how John Wick barely spends any time in the hospital or tending his wounds because he’s too busy killing people).

Thankfully, after Rake is reasonably back to health, he immediately gets recruited to save his sister-in-law who is being held under lock and key by her abusive husband with her son and daughter. This is done by a charismatic Idris Elba, who teases Rake about his name and drinks his beer and is a welcome addition to this franchise. The ensuing rescue mission from a Georgian prison (the country, not the state) containing a 21-minute oner—with hidden cuts—is an exhilarating prison break sequence that keeps topping itself and is the highlight of the film.

It begins with Rake fighting the prisoners, made up of dozens of extras that all had to choreograph with each other in a believable way for Rake to make his escape with the family. Some of the best kills include a dumbbell to the face, and another has Rake’s arm being lit on fire, which he puts out by punching someone in the face repeatedly. It looks a lot cooler than the stop, drop, and roll business I was taught in school.

From there, they make their escape in a car chase, a train chased by helicopters, and then in a warehouse shootout. If there’s any complaint to be had about this first act of the movie, it’s that it’s so impressive in doubling the oner sequence from the first film (which was about 10 minutes), that it could have easily been the final act with how thrilling it is. That there is another hour of the movie after means that it has a lot to live up to. Some ways that it does that is by having a skyscraper sequence where Tyler must protect the family from the children’s uncle who is seeking revenge for his brother. Tyler’s partner in these missions is Nik (Golshifteh Farahan), who was also in the first film, but is a lot more involved in the sequel, and her and Tyler’s relationship is something I would like to see explored in future films.

Aside from the opening, the weakest part of the film is the son who must decide if he is going to join his uncle or stay with Tyler and his mom. The loyalty storyline in the midst of all the action just didn’t work, and put his own family in danger. I suppose it was placed to test Tyler’s skills as a pseudo-father as this franchise is a redemption story of Tyler choosing to enlist in the war when his son was diagnosed with cancer, but his relationship with children in both Extraction films always seems to maintain that they’re the worst; in the first film he has an entire fight scene where he slaps and kicks a gang of kids, but it’s okay because they were trying to kill him! Rake does get some much-needed resolution for his parental mistakes in the final act of Extraction II, and Hemsworth is more than capable of handling these scenes as well.

Ultimately, 2023 is shaping up to be a banner year for action films with John Wick 4, Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part 1 and Dune Part 2, and Extraction II‘s well-choreographed action and smooth camera work also make it a part of the conversation. Maybe the Academy will finally consider adding a stunt category now? Either way, they have already announced Extraction III, and I’m looking forward to seeing what they accomplish with the new cast of characters and with Hemsworth’s dedication to Tyler Rake. Netflix has a certified action franchise on its hands.