Netflix’s new Extraction, starring Chris Hemsworth, is an action-packed thrill-ride, and it’s no coincidence why. Its intense fight choreography and smartly-constructed action scenes are no doubt thanks to director, Sam Hargrave, himself the previous stunt double for Captain America in the Marvel movies. Writing the screenplay are the Russo Brothers, the directors behind Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Endgame. While the writing isn’t top-notch by any means, it doesn’t have to be. We’re watching an action movie, not a drama, and the audience isn’t here to see any interesting dialogue. That being said, The Russo Brothers do add to the intense world in writing a story that is easy to follow and has multiple twists at the same time. The movie is made truly thrilling and fun, though, because of the director and the cast.

Chris Hemsworth plays Tyler Rake, a black-market mercenary who is hired to rescue the kidnapped son of a crime lord. With nothing left to lose, Rake takes up the job, but the mission is made nearly impossible when the kidnapper of the son – who happens to be a wealthy drug lord – puts the city on lockdown and begins a manhunt for the kid and the mercenary who took him. Hemsworth delivers a realistic portrayal of a man mentally and physically damaged but also psychologically drained from a past trouble. He finds himself at odds with what to do but keeps going nonetheless.

In the supporting cast, standouts include Rudhraksh Jaiswal (the kid of the crime lord), Randeep Hoda, Stranger Things‘ David Harbour, and Geetanjali Thapa. All of the cast members hold their own and do a great job at enhancing the story, each of them with their own intriguing characters.

Sam Hargrave makes his feature directorial debut with this movie and does a good job. He works best when directing action scenes, as you see on full display here. The fight choreography is almost as good as those in the critically-acclaimed John Wick movies, and Hargrave makes s0me interesting artistic choices, including some fight scenes done in one-shot that put you right into the fight alongside the characters. The movie is incredibly violent (maybe more than it needs to be), but the violence allows the story to have higher stakes and adds to the intensity of the situation on-screen. The world of Extraction is ruthless, one in which the characters don’t know who to trust, and one in which they really can’t afford to trust anyone. The movie is also surprisingly heart-felt and sad, which makes you feel for the characters and puts as much desperation on the audience as the characters have. You want them to get out of the city as soon as possible.

All in all, Extraction is an action-packed ride, and, considering there aren’t many new movies out nowadays, it’s definitely worth checking out.