New Netflix Intense Action Thriller Is A Military Mission Gone Horribly Wrong
Netflix has a new No. 1 film streaming that stars Russell Crowe and Liam Hemsworth with support from Luke Hemsworth, Ricky Whittle, Milo Ventimiglia, and others. It’s a war film entitled Land of Bad and features a running 48-hour battle. Liam Hemsworth’s Sgt. J.J. Kinney is attached to an Army Delta Force unit during its mission to retrieve a CIA intelligence asset who has fallen into enemy hands in the southern Philippine Islands.
The Land Of Bad
Kinney very much is a fish out of water in this role but manages to get along with a little help from his Delta Force compatriots who view him as a potential mission liability. Kinney’s role in Land of Bad is to maintain communications with an Air Force drone operator who provides timely intelligence and tactical support when needed.
That tactical support lags during a critical moment as the extraction team runs into more trouble than anticipated, leading to the running 48-hour battle.
Drones
Unlike his prior film roles, such as the featured gladiator in the Academy Award-winning film of the same name, Crowe doesn’t really get in on the action. He’s a drone pilot and Air Force Captain named Eddie “Reaper” Grim who is stationed at the Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas.
Reaper is recently divorced and awaiting the birth of a new child as the action unfolds thousands of miles away.
The Mission
Grimm and support pilot Staff Sgt. Nia Branson initially are tasked with assisting the Delta Force mission in Land of Bad, which is expected to last only a couple of hours. When it runs more than a day, Grimm refuses to leave his post – until faced with willfully walking away from the mission or being demoted due to fatigue.
Director William Eubank does a great job of juxtaposition by showing the drama affecting Grim in Las Vegas versus the ongoing and very deadly battle in the Philippines.
Action-Packed
As you likely know, Liam and Luke Hemsworth are the younger brothers of Thor star Chris Hemsworth. Neither is a beginner, and both put their respective acting experience and talents to good use in the action-thriller.
The action is fast-paced and the cinematography is quite good, which gives Land of Bad audiences visual delights that greatly complement the story’s pacing.
Stream It Now
The 2024 film didn’t make much of an impact at the box office despite its quality cast. It was released on February 16 and generated only $6.94 million in box office ticket sales.
It never really was intended as a box office production and never played at more than 1,317 theaters during its widest release. That’s about a third of the number that typically supports box office hits.
As a streaming feature, though, the film has hit its stride with a runtime of 114 minutes. It earned a respectable 65 percent favorable rating among critics on IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes.
More impressively—and much more importantly—it earned a 94 percent favorable rating among audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Ultimately, that’s what counts when it comes to delivering satisfying entertainment, and you can watch Land of Bad on Netflix today.
