Netflix’s Havoc is filled with bloody, action-packed fight sequences, but also a messy, ridiculous plot. It’s a “turn your brain off and have fun” movie.
After four years of delays and development hurdles, Havoc is finally making its way to Netflix. Starring Tom Hardy, Timothy Olyphant, and Forest Whitaker, I had a pretty good feeling this was going to be an action-heavy film, and I was right.
What there is of a plot is more of a mess than anything else, and the fight sequences might look cool, but if you think about them for too long, they are absolutely ridiculous. Still, this is one of those movies where if you turn your brain off, you are sure to have a good time.
The story follows Detective Walker (Hardy) as he hunts down the estranged son of a politician (Whitaker). The son, Charlie, is in a whole lot of trouble after getting mixed up in a drug deal gone wrong. This causes Walker to have to take on several different factions, including a vengeful crime syndicate and his fellow cops.
As a parent myself, I was hoping to relate to Mother. I understand her intentions, as she sends people out into the city to avenge the death of her son, but she often feels as if she is acting hastily.
That said, everyone grieves in their own way, so perhaps she is just not thinking rationally in these moments. One would think that as the head of a massive crime syndicate, however, she would not be willing to burn it all to the ground just like that.
If you are able to ignore the fact that almost no one ever reloads their weapons or runs out of ammo, the action sequences here are a lot of fun. While they do seem to go on forever at times, that is part of their charm.
These fights are some of the most over-the-top, ridiculous scenes I have seen in a while, but I had a lot of fun with most of them. I did find myself thinking logically at first – like, how has that person shot over one hundred times and never reloaded? – but once I let go of that and immersed myself in the madness, I was having a blast.
One of my favorite things about Hardy as an actor is that he has impeccable comedic timing. Even in the midst of an action movie like Havoc, he dropped a few one-liners that took me out. The way he talks to his “partner” during their investigation of the big crime scene had me dying. It felt very Eddie Brock, and I loved every single second of it.
Timothy Olyphant is always great, which is why I was a little bummed that it felt like his character contibuted most to the messy plot. Without giving too much away, the people that he is after have a whole lot of other people who want to kill them, so why bother?
Keep your hands clean and let others do it for you. This motivation never made sense to me, which made me feel like he did not even need to be in the film.
Admittedly, Havoc is a pretty ridiculous movie. So much of the plot makes absolutely no sense, feeling like it is put there solely to be the cause of more bananas action sequences. Guns never run out of ammo, and people never get tired even after seemingly hours of running and shooting, and fighting.
But hey, if you are looking for some bloody, action-packed sequences that will make you wince (especially towards the end), then Havoc is for you. Check it out on April 25 when it hits Netflix.
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About Havoc
Walker (Tom Hardy) is a bruised detective fighting his way through the criminal underworld threatening to engulf his entire city. In the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong, Walker finds himself with a number of factions on his tail; a vengeful crime syndicate, a crooked politician, as well as his fellow cops. When attempting to rescue the politician’s estranged son, whose involvement in the drug deal starts to unravel a deep web of corruption and conspiracy, he is forced to confront the demons of his past.
Havoc is a high octane action thriller written and directed by Gareth Evans (The Raid, Gangs of London), and starring Tom Hardy, Jessie Mei Li, Justin Cornwell, Quelin Sepulveda, Luis Guzmán, Michelle Waterson, Sunny Pang, Jim Caesar, Xelia Mendes-Jones with Yeo Yann Yann, Timothy Olyphant, and Forest Whitaker.
Havoc starts streaming on Netflix on April 25.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. On Camera personality and TV / Film Critic with 10+ years of experience in video editing, writing, editing, moderating, and hosting.