Publisher: CinemaSerf September 3, 2023
You might be more forgiving of this if you are a fan of Chris Rock's fast-paced, quick-thinking banter. If you are not then it really can border on the puerile at times. The premiss sees Rock ("Jake") recruited by worldly CIA man "Oakes" (Sir Anthony Hopkins) after his twin brother is killed. Aside from the fact that "Jake" didn't even know he had a brother, let alone that he was an agent, he is not an especially brave young man who tends to let his mouth do most of the work - so off we go into the murky and perilous world of terrorists bent on killing his fiancée and destroying New York. It's all pretty formulaic stuff - pyrotechnics, shoot 'em ups, secret codes etc. - with Hopkins standing around most of the time chewing on a toothpick looking about as disinterested at I rapidly became. Some of Rock's retorts are quite amusing, but at two hours the story wears too thin too quickly and there is little, if any, chemistry between the two at the top of the bill. The effects are pretty standard, as is the plot and though it is watchable enough, it's certainly not remotely memorable.