Moreover, Snyder has indicated that he’s not done with the “Rebel Moon” franchise, although given the expense and scale of these films, Netflix will likely need to have a long talk with its algorithm before signing up for more.Īccentuating the positive, after the long set-up that was “Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire,” the second movie moves faster, culminating with a sprawling battle. Given Snyder’s loyal fan base, earned (and mostly deserved) for his work on the DC universe and before that “300,” the relationship surely possesses intangible value to a subscription streaming service. Yet the second half of his original space epic, “Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver,” primarily distinguishes the director’s recent knack for separating Netflix from lots of money, with relatively little, at least in terms of recommendable movies, to show for it. It’s rated R.Zack Snyder has established himself as a gifted visual and action stylist, even in his less satisfying films. “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” premieres April 19 in US theaters.

Even so, a bit more brains to go with all that brawn would have improved things considerably, and maybe even made these gentlemen (and lady) operators seem a bit more special. Those who choose to can enjoy the movie strictly for its red-carpet-friendly cast and muscular mix of a caper with check-your-brain-at-the-door-type action.

The closing crawl provides a clearer sense of those, in a way that merely heightens a wish Ritchie and his script collaborators had toned down the embellishment. Still, the desire to adapt the film to fit producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s blockbuster filmography and Ritchie’s kinetic style keeps dragging it in that direction and away from the grit that would bolster its historical underpinnings. In keeping with a long tradition of movies built around dangerous wartime assignments (“The Guns of Navarone” also comes to mind), the best-laid plans never quite follow the script and inevitably call for improvisation. The central quintet (rounded out by Henry Golding of “Crazy Rich Asians,” Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Alex Pettyfer) also receives logistical help from a female spy (“ 3 Body Problem” star Eiza González) tasked with seducing and distracting the German commander (“Basterds’” Til Schweiger) and a resourceful businessman (Babs Olusanmokun) operating out of the port, on the Spanish island Fernando Po, where the boat is docked.įrom the opening sequence, Ritchie (who previously teamed with Cavill on “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.”) works from the well-founded theory that the cathartic act of killing Nazis during World War II doesn’t require explanation. Specifically, March-Phillipps and company are tasked with blowing up a supply vessel that requires overcoming enormous odds, understanding that the British government will disavow them, and the Germans will torture and kill them. Known as Operation Postmaster, the mission played a vital role in the war effort, seeking to sideline the supply chain outfitting Germany’s U-boats, knowing that the submarines’ presence in the Atlantic had, among other things, helped keep the US out of the war. Adding a pinch of “The Dirty Dozen,” the squad operated under the leadership of a bad-attitude agent, Cavill’s Gus March-Phillipps, who had to be sprung from military prison to lead the group. That plot involves a secretive version of a nascent special-ops team – given the go-ahead by Winston Churchill himself (an unrecognizable Rory Kinnear) – a real group whose existence remained classified for decades before being detailed in a 2014 book. While Ritchie might have been in a hurry to get into the action, it comes at the expense of an investment in the individuals beyond the dire nature of the plot.

Given that Henry Cavill (having entered his spy phase, between this and “Argylle”) and Alan Ritchson ( “Reacher”) bring their considerable brawn to the festivities, it’s somewhat ironic how thin and un-fleshed-out the characters are. The underwritten, somewhat messy results are broadly entertaining if not fully seaworthy from a dramatic point of view. As war movies go, “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” ends up in a kind of no-man’s land, draping elements of “Mission: Impossible,” “Inglourious Basterds” and director Guy Ritchie’s brand of violent action-comedy over the bones of a fascinating World War II true story.

Mi movist