You’ve got to hand it to Netflix for remaining true to itself and consistently unleashing big budget action spectaculars boasting a handful of major stars that are almost always terrible, with Hidden Strike the latest addition to the never-ending production line of underwhelming blockbusters.
In the streaming service’s defense, the latest feature from Need for Speed and EXPEND4BLES (yep, that’s really what they’re calling it) director Scott Waugh isn’t technically a Netflix original, but the platform decided there was no harm in picking up the rights to a movie starring John Cena and Jackie Chan that had been stuck in purgatory and cycled through four different titles since shooting first wrapped half a decade ago.
The downside is that it’s beginning to look as though the company has another stinker on its hands if the first wave of reactions are anything to go by, but history has nonetheless shown that Hidden Strike will undoubtedly be one of the most-watched titles on the entire content library by this time tomorrow.
Clearly, the lure of Cena and Chan partnering up for an odd couple adventure is more than enough to entice subscribers into giving Hidden Strike a whirl, and there might even be some fun to be had if expectations are set reasonably low, which they should be given Netflix’s propensity for focusing on nothing but mediocrity when it comes to action-packed epics coated in a Hollywood sheen.
Again, Hidden Strike is technically a Chinese production, but the director and two leads are famed for their Stateside exploits, although there’s only so many technicalities you can bust out to try and defend yet another turgid Netflix exclusive.