6 Underground – Film Review
Six individuals from all around the globe, each the very best at what they do, have been chosen not only for their skill, but for a unique desire to delete their pasts to change the future.
Think of all of the things that Michael Bay places in his movies. There are plenty of so-called “Bayisms” to be found in pretty much every single one of his movies to date. Firstly, there is perhaps the most well known Bayism, known as “Bayhem”, which is usually just his excuse to put as much carnage and computer-generated explosions on screen all at once. This can be seen in practically every one of his Transformers films.
Now, there are also the three hundred sixty degree pans he loves to use, tons and tons of slow motion sequences, and of course, product placement. The most notable instance of this is probably in 2014’s abysmally bad Transformers: Age of Extinction, where Mark Wahlberg’s character Cade Yeager, while in the middle of a crazy battle with the Autobots and Deceptions, stops to drink a Bud Light.
All of these hilarious Bayisms are present in his latest feature 6 Underground, which has a more quiet release, as, instead of releasing in theatres worldwide, it can now be viewed on Netflix from the comfort of your own home. It’s a good thing they decided to release it on there, because I get the feeling that a lot of audiences would have had a hard time sitting through this overly long, headache inducing mess.
Ryan Reynolds as One in 6 Underground (2019)
However, there is one point I desperately want to get across here – I think that Michael Bay is absolutely incredible at visual effects and action. Him and his team work tirelessly on creating some genuinely beautiful scenes, and, whether you like his movies or not, you have to give the guy credit where credit is due.
This film does definitely have Bayhem, and for the most part, it can be a ton of fun to watch, as there are plenty of scenes here that are incredibly wild and really don’t make a ton of sense, but boy are they fun to watch. If you have ever wanted to watch Ryan Reynolds run around causing chaos outside of the Deadpool franchise, than you are in luck here.
The biggest issue with 6 Underground is its story, however. It is simply dull and extremely boring. It never attempts to go anywhere, and they never try to make the plot juicy enough for us to care. Every time you think things may get exciting in terms of a story, it falls back on the tried and true action sequences in hopes that you will forget about a competent story.
Ryan Reynolds as One in 6 Underground (2019).
If I am going to be honest, the biggest praise I can give this movie is that it is a wholly fun experience and there is usually always something exciting to look at visually. Whether its ridiculous, over-the-top action set pieces or its goofy display of its Bayisms. Also, I have to admit, the cinematography here is pretty good too, shot by Bojan Bazelli, although the film does come complete with a lot of lens flares, which can get really old really quickly. Just like the rest of the film.
6 Underground certainly has fun, over-the-top action that Michael Bay fans are used to, but its story is ridiculously bland and incompetent.
Overall Grade: D+
MPAA Rating: R for strong violence and language throughout, bloody images and some sexual content
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Mélanie Laurent, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Adria Arjona, Payman Maadi, Corey Hawkins, Ben Hardy, Dave Franco
Directed by: Michael Bay
Distributed by: Netflix
Running Time: 128 minutes