Interceptor

Elsa Pataky takes on white supremacist baddies and saves America from nukes in the entertaining "Interceptor" from Netflix.

“Interceptor” convinces you enough that only JJ can save the people of America, which includes the dopey bearded TV salesman who you’ll recognize after a few seconds, and the movie then cuts back to again and again. Bracey, in particular, who fashions a sociopath out of a generic piece of white bread, just won’t shut the hell up about his motivations for destroying America and how he is outraged about his privilege, etc. “Interceptor” fashions some type of message about the people who are wrong with America, but that the nation is still worth saving.

A frantic real-time piece of pulp about one woman trying to avert nuclear missiles hitting the US is clunky yet committed.

There are also some attempts to modernise a dusty formula with Pataky’s backstory involving a case of sexual harassment from a superior (a noble if mishandled subplot) and some of the villain’s ramblings touching on nepotism and white privilege. It’s defiantly uncool, without the wink-wink nostalgia one might expect, and on its own silly, low-stakes terms, it kind of works, easy to digest if difficult to remember. The past in particular here would be the 80s, a time when action films were all quippy one-liners, earnest melodrama, artfully muddied up T-shirts and an uneasily fetishistic amount of guns.

Practically plays like a discarded Chuck Norris script, just with some modern gender politics and social issues in play.

It also might have been nice to lean into style a bit more with the action, most of which is shot in a way that gets the job done but little more than that. Pataky can be a bit too stoic, especially in the opening scenes, but she’s game for the action of the second half of the film and believable as the hero. Some of the execution is a bit clunky—the fight choreography is flat, especially in the climax—but this is the kind of summer escapism that people often seek as the weather gets warmer across the United States. Now you can get it on Netflix too. Can JJ keep them from the control room that would allow them to disable the interceptors and wipe out the entire United States? This is a homecoming of sorts for Collins, who was forced out of service by trolls who came after her when she blew the whistle on the superior who sexually assaulted her. Matthew Reilly’s debut “Interceptor,” now on Netflix, might as well come with a Cannon logo in front of it.

"Interceptor," the 2022 action drama, is written and directed by Mathew Reilly and co-written by Stuart Beattie. Elsa Pataky plays the protagonist, Captain.

Collins was able to push them back just in time and shoot the interceptor to take down the incoming nuclear missile. The President comes to meet Collins and appoints her to the National Security Staff. If somehow she was able to make Alexander launch his missile before the rig sank, she could launch the interceptors and shoot them down. His men had gone to the Veterans Retirement Home, where her father was staying, and had him under his custody. A grief-stricken Collins was devastated as she thought she had lost her father, but she still didn’t compromise the security of her nation. Collins was supposed to be stationed at Fort Hunter, and her posting was changed at the last minute. His father was the ambassador representing the United States in the UN, and he always considered him to be an incumbent who didn’t deserve the post. Alexander told Collins that he was not just a terrorist but that his fight was with society in general. But just then, they were sent a warning video, recorded by a Russian terrorist, who said that they had 16 missiles aimed at 16 different cities in the United States. The Marshall and others knew that the threat was real. Even the transmitter at the base was destroyed, and hence they couldn’t relay the information to the SBX-1 station. The United States of America had two interceptor bases, which, in case of a nuclear attack, detected the missiles in space and counter attacked the missiles, and stopped them from reaching American soil. Now reinstated at a remote location, Collins finds herself amidst a mission of great significance to the United States of America. Millions of lives depend on her courage and tactical skills.

Shite joke, I know, but it's in the recycling-old-junk spirit of this throwbacky flick, which casts Fast and Furious series veteran Elsa Pataky as a badass ...

And hey guess what, the mastermind of this fiendish scenario is right there on SBX-1: Alexander (Luke Bracey), an exceptionally shitty white guy who declares with utter cockiness, “Today, America dies in a paroxysm of fear!” But he didn’t account for Capt. Collins, who clearly took the Chuck Norris MasterClass, and has absolutely no interest in seeing America die in such a paroxysm! Now, should diabolical forces take control of 16 nukes in Russia and threaten to turn 16 U.S. cities to radioactive nuclear-winter hellzones, it’s entirely on SBX-1 to knock down the rockets. It appears to be some kind of demotion, but the woman who greets her on the base says, “All of us girls are really proud of what you did… The interceptors originate from two locations, Fort Greely, Alaska, and SBX-1, a base in a secret location in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. There. Now you don’t have to read all the dumb title cards at the beginning of this movie, which stack up like a double UNO deck. The Gist: Please bear with me as I work my way through this setup, because the following information is crucial to understanding the many countdown clocks – backed by a very intense amped-up thundering musical score, of course – that litter this movie like candy on the curb during the Fourth of July parade: It takes 24 minutes for a Russian nuclear missile to reach the U.S. It takes 12 minutes for an interceptor missile to destroy the nuke. HEY 1986 CALLED AND IT WANTS INTERCEPTOR (NOW ON NETFLIX) BACK. Shite joke, I know, but it’s in the recycling-old-junk spirit of this throwbacky flick, which casts Fast and Furious series veteran Elsa Pataky as a badass forced to stop some evil mofos from nuking 300 million people.

In ​​Interceptor, director & co-writer Matthew Reilly has taken on quite the task. The result is a somewhat entertaining, silly & wonky action flick.

Interceptor checks all the boxes in terms of making an action film that will grab the audience's attention, have one root for the hero, and let out a few chuckles (especially for one horribly done cameo) before promptly forgetting the movie exists. The scenario is highly improbable, but it's a decent setup for an epic fight between one woman and a team of highly trained individuals. Through its small roster of characters, the story plays tug-of-war with the idea of American exceptionalism and the extreme misogyny that plagues the world's largest military. The heroism on display by Collins and Indian American Rahul Shah (Mayen Mehta) is heralded for not just being heroic for the sake of humanity, but because — despite discrimination and bigotry — they will stand for the country and army that hate them for being different. A film that aspires to reach those heights needs to have everything working perfectly, starting with a leading actor that can carry a movie alongside engaging fight choreography, exceptional filming techniques, and pacing that constantly ratchets up the tension. Pataky doesn't over-commit to the "action star" persona.

The latest Netflix action movie Interceptor starring Elsa Pataky shares similarities with other great movies of the genre, from Die Hard to The Rock.

But when a group of terrorists take hold of the vessel, he proves himself to be a one-man army. Part of what makes Collins such an interesting hero is how she is so disrespected by those in the military. But while nuclear weapons are often a threat featured in the Mission: Impossible movies, it is the fourth installment that shares similarities to Interceptor. The threat of nuclear missiles launching has been used many times in movies as a global threat and it is an effective one. Though it is a globe-spanning adventure, the fact that Hunt and his team are left on their own gives it a similar isolated feel. In some ways, the style and tone can feel outdated but it is sure to offer a bit of nostalgic fun for fans of these types of adventures. There is a definite suspension of disbelief that needs to occur when watching movies like this. This is also used very effectively in Michael Bay's excellent action movie, The Rock. While it focuses on a team of heroes rather than a lone hero, Elsa Pataky would make a fitting member of the Expendables squad. Very early on in Interceptor, Collins finds herself locked in the control room of the base with the villains on the other side, desperately trying to make their way in. however, they soon discover that the men want what is in that room. Netflix's latest action movie Interceptor is now available to deliver thrills and excitement to fans.

With Hemsworth as executive producer, Netflix's latest headlines his real-life partner Elsa Pataky as an action heroine. In the movie Interceptor, Pataky plays ...

In fact, all the actors struggle with this issue and despite their physical commitment, the action itself feels uninspired, largely coming down to how cheap the filmmaking is. To give the film credit, it does try to be progressive as despite its identity of a typical American action film, our heroine is Spanish, accompanied by a fellow soldier of Hindu descent, both of which are battling villains who are supposedly fighting for America to be narrowly patriotic, even if their plan is to simply blow it up. With more original content heading our way onto streaming services, there is also the worry that these services could be the home of some litter, or in Netflix’s case, films made with the quality similar to straight-to-video fodder.