I’ll be honest and say I’ve done my fair share of Micheal Bay bashing. While he has given us great popcorn movies like Bad Boys, Bad Boys 2, and The Rock that make for a great trip to the theater. He also gives the world The Transformer sequels, Armageddon, and of course Pearl Harbor. It seems that he likes to ride that fine line between “this is fun” and “this is awful.” Here is where 6 Underground lives and thrives.
The story is about a billionaire (Ryan Reynolds) puts together an “elite” team to try and take care of the world’s evils. He does this by faking their deaths and turning them into ghost. With their newfound freedom, they can do the missions that can truly save the world. Does it sound cliche maybe already done before? That’s what this story feels like. It seems to be a collection of elements that worked in other movies and shows and then adds some Bay flair to the mix. So let’s review the Micheal Bay checklist.
| Lens Flair | ✅ |
| Low Angle Shots | ✅ |
| Continuity Errors | ✅ |
| Gun Fights | ✅ |
| Gorgeous Actors | ✅ |
| Slow Motion | ✅ |
| Explosions | ✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅ |
The writers (Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese) do a great job with the dialogue between the characters. They all have a unique personality while also playing into a trope they fall into. The chemistry between the team members Having both the writers and star of the Deadpool movies really sells the comedy between the action. The dialogue that progresses the story, however, is a little clunky at times and can feel like Armageddon at some moments.
Now this movie feels like it wants to be a must-see action movie, but the action just doesn’t live up to it. The driving sequences feel more like they belong in commercials, and was trying to copy Baby Driver. There’s another sequence where the team has to kidnap a target and it feels like they tried to rip off Sicario. All the fight scenes are quick cuts and shaky cam, so it’s not the best at showing fight details. But that’s not to say that all the action sequences are bad. There are scenes that involve free-running that are shot very well and fit into the story.
But with all that said, what’s the final verdict? Well…I love-hate it. As a fan of action movies it’s very mediocre, offers little to set it apart, and feels like an expensive B-movie. But sometimes I just want to turn my brain off and enjoy what’s on. 6 Underground is that fun dumb movie where you don’t think about what’s going on and just enjoy it. It’s in the magic area where it’s both fun and awful. It feels like Michael Bay took all his criticisms over the years, embraced them, then cranked it to 11. In all honesty it’s a solid 2.5 out of 5, but it’s also a movie where you don’t care what it’s rated, if you want to watch it you will.
