On Prime Video on January 28 is ‘The Wrecking Crew’ a new buddy action comedy led by Jason Momoa (‘Aquaman’) and Dave Bautista (‘Guardians of the Galaxy’), who here play estranged brothers brought back together by the death of their grungy private eye father.
HNJsiQ8BLK7HMqhTF1aaW7Directed by Ángel Manuel Soto (‘Blue Beetle’), the cast for the movie also includes Morena Baccarin (‘Deadpool’), Jacob Batalon (‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’), Frankie Adams (‘The Expanse’), Temuera Morrison (‘The Book of Boba Fett’), Claes Bang (‘The Square’) and Stephen Root (‘Office Space’).
Related Article: ‘Blue Beetle’ Director Ángel Manuel Soto Attached to ‘The Wrecking Crew’
Initial Thoughts
Projects dreamed up by actors who really want to work together can run the risk of becoming bloated vanity projects. Yet ‘The Wrecking Crew,’ spawned from an idea by leads Dave Bautista and Jason Momoa, manages to avoid most of those traps by being exactly what you might expect.
Front-loaded with action and powered by the charisma of its main men, ‘The Wrecking Crew’ harbors no illusions as to what it is –– dumb, fun and full of chaos.
Script and Direction
Writer Jonathan Tropper (‘This is Where I Leave You’), is more normally known for his cinematic work alongside Shawn Levy, but while his movies have been more emotional and spiritual, his TV work, especially ‘Banshee’ has more of a connection to this film.
The style here is adrenaline-fueled action comedy with a healthy dollop of comedy to leaven our heroes slaughtering squads of henchmen as they investigate their father’s suspicious death.
Though you could probably guess the entire plot before the credits have finished, it’s entirely disposable and not the selling point.
Director Ángel Manuel Soto keeps things light and nimble, and if it ends up a little overstuffed for such a slim premise, it doesn’t suffer.
Cast and Performances
This really is the Bautista and Momoa show, the pair sharing some crackling chemistry as long-estranged brothers –– one a taciturn Navy SEAL who prefers to go by the book, the other a maverick cop with a penchant for leather jackets and throwing empty beer bottles.
They really do pull this thing along on their shared shoulders, but the likes of Jacob Batalon, Stephen Root and Morena Baccarin all get decent material to work.
Final Thoughts
It’s often vulgar, violent and has a storyline you could note on a napkin, but ‘The Wrecking Crew’ also has throwback charm and action bedlam that adds up to decent entertainment value.
‘The Wrecking Crew’ receives 70 out of 100.
What’s the story of ‘The Wrecking Crew’?
Two estranged half-brothers, Jonny (Jason Momoa) and James (Dave Bautista) are forced to reunite after their father’s mysterious death. As they set out to uncover the truth, buried secrets resurface and loyalties are tested, unveiling a conspiracy that can tear their family apart.
Together, they are ready to wreck anything that gets in their way.
Who is in the cast of ‘The Wrecking Crew’?
- Jason Momoa as Jonny Hale
- Dave Bautista as James Hale
- Claes Bang as Marcus Robichaux
- Temuera Morrison as Governor Peter Mahoe
- Jacob Batalon as Pika
- Frankie Adams as Haunani “Nani” Palakiko)
- Stephen Root as Detective Sergeant Karl Rennert
List of Dave Bautista Movies:
- ‘The Man with the Iron Fists‘ (2012)
- ‘Riddick‘ (2013)
- ‘Guardians of the Galaxy‘ (2014)
- ‘Spectre‘ (2015)
- ‘Heist‘ (2015)
- ‘The Boss‘ (2016)
- ‘Marauders‘ (2016)
- ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2‘ (2017)
- ‘Blade Runner 2049‘ (2017)
- ‘Avengers: Infinity War‘ (2018)
- ‘Hotel Artemis‘ (2018)
- ‘Escape Plan 2: Hades‘ (2018)
- ‘Avengers: Endgame‘ (2019)
- ‘Stuber‘ (2019)
- ‘Escape Plan: The Extractors‘ (2019)
- ‘My Spy‘ (2020)
- ‘Army of the Dead‘ (2021)
- ‘Dune‘ (2021)
- ‘Thor: Love and Thunder‘ (2022)
- ‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery‘ (2022)
- ‘Knock at the Cabin‘ (2023)
- ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3‘ (2023)
- ‘The Boy and the Heron‘ (2023)
- ‘Dune: Part Two‘ (2024)
- ‘My Spy: The Eternal City‘ (2024)
- ‘The Killer’s Game‘ (2024)
- ‘Trap House‘ (2025)
- ‘The Wrecking Crew’ (2026)
