When it comes to cracking Netflix’s Top 10 most-watched list, it generally depends on what subscribers are in the mood for on any given day, but there are three types of content that you can usually rely on. The first is obviously anything related to Adam Sandler, the second is whatever high-profile original feature film or TV show has recently been released, and for some reason, the third is terrible B-tier action movies.
For instance, Bruce Willis’ descent into mediocrity has generated some stinkers, but they’ve always performed inexplicably well on the streaming service. Marauders was troubling the Top 10 as recently as last week, although viewers instantly regretted their decision to check out Hard Kill. Gerard Butler’s Geostorm and Dwayne Johnson’s Skyscraper, meanwhile, have also posted a strong showing despite being widely panned, but in a shocking turn of events, the next actioner primed for a potentially decent run on Netflix is actually pretty good.
Jason Momoa‘s Braven gets added to the library on Thursday, and is well worth checking out. The Aquaman star plays Joe Braven, who heads up to his family’s remote mountain cabin with his father for the weekend, only to run into trouble when a gang of drug runners also pitch up after their truck full of cargo crashes.
Braven is an unashamedly old school action flick that wouldn’t have been out of place in the 1980s, relying on nothing more than a charismatic lead performance and a series of escalating set pieces. Lin Oeding is the latest in a long line of stunt performers to turn his hand to directing, and while it isn’t quite on the same level as John Wick or Extraction, it’s 94 minutes of pure entertainment nonetheless.