Back In Action review: Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz fail to steam up the proceedings

Back in Action poster

Film: Back in Action
Cast: Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, McKenna Roberts, Rylan Jackson, Kyle Chandler
Director: Seth Gordon
Rating: 2/5
Runtime: 114 min

Jamie Foxx is back in action following his stroke which ostensibly happened while the shoot was on and Cameron Diaz is back from a decade long hiatus. They are indeed reteaming after Diaz's last film Annie. So there's something to look forward to from the stars at least. Are they up to it, you may well ask?

They're not too bad for stars who've literally come back from the cold. The story helps them along. They play former CIA spies Emily and Matt who are pulled back into espionage after their secret identities are exposed.

This is basically a rather superficial Netflix spy comedy. CGI-heavy set pieces, glib banter in a glossy, globetrotting action extravaganza, is par for that course.

It's familiar and predictable, too.

Back in Action has an oft-repeated premise. Diaz and Foxx co-star as Emily and Matt, former spies who fell in love with each other on an ill-fated mission 15 years ago. Since then they have given up their dangerous life of espionage, and enjoy a blissfull family life in suburban Atlanta with their two kids: teenager Alice (McKenna Roberts) and tween Leo (Rylan Jackson). Their former boss (Kyle Chandler) arrives on their doorstep to inform them that they've been compromised, so obviously Emily and Matt must get back in action.

Their goal is to track down an instrument which can create widespread power fluctuations. As an inspiration from 'Spy Kids' their children also get dragged into the adventures and find out who they really are and what they really do. The parent-child relationship is depicted quite well. There's palpable tension and frayed edgy behaviour as a result of that fraught period.

Diaz and Foxx fail to steam up the proceedings. They are unable to drum up any chemistry between them. The script from Gordon and co-writer Brendan O'Brien fails to give their characters reason to make it count. There's just too much talk happening for anything else to count.

Diaz and Foxx, individually have the moxie to charm though. Both have an appealing presence. Glenn Close cast as Emily's estranged mother, a former spy herself who remains formidable long after her own retirement, is to the manner born. She does her bit beautifully. But Andrew Scott is just passable as an MI6 agent who's been on the hunt for Emily.

'Back in Action' has chases, brawls and assorted action playing to songs like Etta James' 'At Last', James Brown's 'Papa's Got a Brand New Bag' and Dean Martin's 'Ain't That a Kick in the Head', but this combo effect has no bearing on the enjoyment. At best this film is a drag.