In the past few years, “Smokin 'Aces” director Joe Carahhan has twice proven that he does not need to deliver original ideas to deliver moody action spectacles: In “Boss Level” with Frank Grillo and Mel Gibson, he missed the time loop plot from “… And every day greet the marmot and a little laconic humor Brachial-new coat of paint. His siege thriller “Copshop” with Gerard Butler, on the other hand, scored with pointed oneliners and angular characters-despite the many obvious parallels to John Carpenter's classic “Assault-attack at night”. But in this case, unfortunately, all good things are not three.
“”Shadow Force – the last mission“Now proves to be a rather steady mix of the Netflix hit” Back in Action “with Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz as well as the Amazon Prime chart striker” G20 “with viola Davis as a US president in the” Die Slow “mode. At least one has to keep to the film that it was turned off in Colombia in October 2022 (and thus long before the streaming competition). But the real problem is also not that the ex-agent premise with “family over everything” credo seems suspiciously known, but that the sparse gags all already occur in the trailer and the rest as a beer, grim but less spectacular actioner comes from the shelf.
Kyrah (Kerry Washington) takes care of the leading tasks in the relationship, while Isaac (Omar Sy) takes over children's education.
For a long time, Kyrah (Kerry Washington) and Isaac (Omar Sy) were members of the strictly secret elite unit “Shadow Force”, which liquidated unpleasant people on behalf of the world's largest industrialized nations. But then the two of them fell in love with each other and dived together after the birth of their son Ky (Jaahleel Kamara). When ISAAC puts the craft in the event of a gang of robbery, the unscrupulous “Shadow Force” leader and freshly baked G7 general secretary Jack Cinder (Mark Strong) is aware of his renegade ex-employees-and directly relies on it …
Better not think too much about it
Already when reading this synopsis it is noticeable: Joe Carahhan does not really take it exactly with the logic and plausibility of his action thriller. Is it actually a good idea to lift the head of a dubious killer command on a potentially large amount of media echo? And how the hell did the agent team, which is always well informed about current residence, just missed Kyrah's pregnancy at the time?
But be it: While Kyrah travels through the world to hunt her ex-colleagues, he takes care of the shared son at home after an explosion without hearing aid. The classic division of roles is so upside down in the agent couple, which, after a long separation, is beaten by the kitchen of their musty refuge after a long separation-in order to then immediately test their gift accuracy with a marital precision shooting competition. Such scenes are immediately reminiscent of the brachial-moody marriage duel between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in the super hit “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”. A comparable level of charm, irony and class in enjoyable disintegration of your own four walls is not achieved this time.
Mark Strong, as an over-the-top böse weight, unfortunately gets on your nerves quite a bit.
The fact that all of this does not really ignite is also due to the poor staging of the action scenes: Despite the new collaboration with “Boss Level” and “Copshop” cameraman Juan Miguel Azpiroz, Joe Carahhan fails in almost all disciplines. With poor stunt choreography, spanking scenes, shootings and chase (one even on motor boats!) In nervous cutting storms with a confused connections are dissolved – if shaky close -ups and tears do not immediately provide completely disorientation. Those who shoot where or who are looking at whom can sometimes only be advised. A lot of potential is given away, especially with a fast -paced hip between the armored car, motorcycles and a monstrous truck, because the use of dense fog swaths wanted the atmospheric scenery or unintentionally too dim – before it ends in a sudden crash at an early end.
Even if the pace is high and the plot comes up with a few twists, there is simply a lack of humor. The small arguments in the short appearances by Oscar winner Da'vine Joy Randolph (“The Holdovers”) and rapper Cliff “Method Man” Smith as another couple of agents remain to be underdeveloped for real punch line, while the performance of Mark Strong as over-the-top-bundle caricature with the charm of a permanent stone Pitbulls is a truly bad joke. As a loving father and cuddly bear, Omar Sy (“Jurassic World”) still gets out best when he tends to a normal family life apart from brawls and shootings in kitschy Lionel Ritchie songs.
Conclusion: everything just stolen – and not even particularly convincing. The thriller “Shadow Force-The Last Mission”, which is too grim in view of his relaxed story, disappointed with miserable action choreographies and a handful of tired gags that cause little more than one armpit.