War Machine review by Bobby Blakey
Alan Ritchson has been kicking some major ass as Jack Reacher in the TV series. He has been making some appearances in various genres lately, but his latest War Machine looks to take him in a new direction. The film features Blake Richrdson, Stephan James, Alex King, Jai Courtney, Esai Morales and Dennis Quaid from Expendables 3, The Hitman’s Bodyguard and The Man of Toronto director Patrick Hughes. Could this film bring the action it promises, or will it be left out in the forest?
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War Machine follows the humid tension of a grueling Ranger selection process that dissolves into pure survival horror. Recruit 81 carries the crushing weight of a dead brother into the Georgia wilderness, pushing his physical limits until the sky literally breaks open. This is not a standard training exercise. A towering, mechanical nightmare from another world descends upon the exhausted candidates, turning a test of endurance into a frantic, low-visibility hunt where the military hierarchy shatters against superior, alien technology.
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I have been eager to see Ritchson get to headline a big action film, and this was the perfect vehicle for him. The film isn’t trying to be anything deep or new but instead embraces the genre and delivers. It is the kind of film that uses a simplistic yet effective set up to allow us to meet the characters and get them in the path of the destructive force before unleashing chaos. I always worry about these kinds of films coming off as cheesy, but when they work like they do here they are a blast.
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The film is in the vein of ones before it like Predator infused with war films such as Lone Survivor and works. They do a good job of building up the first half with just enough to understand 81’s mentality and who he is while introducing the rest of the unit through the training. It spends a good amount of time on the Ranger training
which could have been a great film, and you tend to forget where its heading. If you avoid the trailer before seeing it then you will be in for a surprise that is out of this world.
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Initially I wasn’t a big fan of the look of the enemy here, but the more the action played out and its varying abilities are revealed it pulled me right in. It is pretty epic and cool bringing an unstoppable nature that made you feel like they were literally fighting against an unstoppable enemy. The action is a blend of fighting and survival using not only military and alien weaponry, but also the environment as an enemy. Once they awaken the fury of this invasion it is a nonstop barrage of action and violence and I was here for all of it.
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If there is one complaint that I think some might have it is the limited use of the other members of the unit. They are built up and do their part, but in the end some felt like just cannon fodder for the action as opposed to really growing the unit. On the flip side that is kind of why it works too as the focus is clearly on 81 and his own need to learn to lead again and bond with his brothers. This is the character arc for his growth and the other members serve their purpose even if not in the way they could have.
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I really like the ending of the film that doesn’t just offer up some easy ending to it all and instead is the beginning. It is a perfect starting point for more films, both as a sequel or even spin-offs but can also be a one-off film with an understanding to where it is heading moving forward. I hope we do get more as I would love to see Ritchson kick more ass in this role and the new directions they could go now that it’s been established.
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Decide for yourself and join the fight with War Machine streaming now exclusively on Netflix.