Movie · 2020 · Action, Thriller · 1h 56m · R · English
Curator score: 2.8/10 (612.3K ratings)
When the mission ends, redemption begins
Overview
A hardened gun-for-hire's latest mission becomes a soul-searching race to survive when he's sent into Bangladesh to rescue a drug lord's kidnapped son.
Ratings
Curator score: 2.8/10
IMDb: 6.8/10
Letterboxd: 3.15/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 67%
Metacritic: 56
TMDB: 7.3/10
Director
Sam Hargrave
Production
AGBO, Thematic Entertainment, TGIM Films
Cast
Chris Hemsworth, Rudhraksh Jaiswal, Randeep Hooda, Golshifteh Farahani, Pankaj Tripathi, David Harbour, Bryon Lerum, Ryder Lerum, Shivam Vichare, Piyush Khati, Sara Rumao, Aarti Kulkarni, Umakant Patil, Praveen Indu, Swapnil Kokam, Neha Mahajan, Pallas Prajapati, Shazia Naz Gill, Rob Collins, Wayne Blair
Where to watch
Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A brutally efficient action vehicle with standout stunt work, a propulsive pace, and a few genuinely memorable set pieces. The tradeoff is thin characterization, familiar rescue-mission plotting, and some uncomfortable colonial/Orientalist framing that can make the whole exercise feel more mechanical than meaningful.
Best for
Viewers who prioritize action choreography over story
Fans of gritty, modern rescue thrillers
People who want a high-energy, mostly non-stop Netflix-style action movie
Audiences curious about long-take stunt filmmaking
Skip if
You need strong character development or emotional depth
You’re sensitive to exploitative or Orientalist depictions
You prefer action films with sharper writing and cleaner worldbuilding
You want something that feels more original than a standard mercenary-rescue plot
Overview
Extraction is built like a stunt reel with a plot attached, and for a lot of viewers that’s enough. Sam Hargrave stages the action with real physical confidence, and the film’s best stretches have a bruising, forward-driving momentum that rarely lets up. The big selling point is obvious: this is a movie that wants you to feel every punch, crash, and desperate sprint through hostile territory.
Worth noting
What keeps it from being a full-throated recommendation is how familiar the story feels once the bullets start flying. The emotional beats are serviceable but thin, and the movie leans hard on a grim, macho rescue-mission template that doesn’t leave much room for surprise. It also carries some baggage in the way it frames Bangladesh and its people, which can be hard to ignore even when the action is working.
Bottom line
If you’re in the mood for a polished, hard-charging action movie with a few genuinely impressive set pieces, it delivers. If you want your action to come with richer characters, more invention, or a less questionable worldview, this one is more of a passable adrenaline hit than a must-see.
Top Letterboxd reviews
LetMeExplain (3★) · 970 likes
Great 12-minute long-take.
Stop tinting these movies so yellow.
matt lynch (3.5★) · 732 likes
The narrative and emotional stakes are ported over from any number of programmers; there are no surprises to be had here. And I don't expect anyone to be super comfy with the orientalism. The star rating is for the truly delightful level of carnage and property destruction on display, including but not limited to: a terrific fake one-er, RPG vs. helicopter, a gang of lethal street urchins, and a part where Thor snaps a dude's neck by swatting him with a different dead guy's body. Hit the spot.
davidehrlich (2★) · 664 likes
From Thor to Fat Thor and various roles in between, Chris Hemsworth has never been shy about using silliness to subvert his god-like good looks. Drawn like a Times Square caricature of an Abercrombie & Fitch model, the Australian star has always been willing and able to shape the absurdity of his sex appeal into the punchline of a joke that we’re all in on together, or at least use it to suspend our disbelief in a cartoonish movie world that… more From Thor to Fat Thor and various roles in between, Chris Hemsworth has never been shy about using silliness to subvert his god-like good looks. Drawn like a Times Square caricature of an Abercrombie & Fitch model, the Australian star has always been willing and able to shape the absurdity of his sex appeal into the punchline of a joke that we’re all in on together, or at least use it to suspend our disbelief in a cartoonish movie world that… more
Sydney🚀 (4★) · 548 likes
If Chad Stahelski and Keanu Reeves are a Michelin Star restaurant, Sam Hargrave and Chris Hemsworth are like that restaurant you grew up with that’s a little rough around the edges but lowkey has banger food. Hell if i don’t enjoy both.
demi adejuyigbe · 520 likes
Knew this was gonna not be for me when it started with the unceremonious execution of an Asian child.