Director/Co-writer Patrick Hughes presents the 2026 Action/Sci Fi Thriller War Machine. The film is high octane adrenaline pumping action from start to finish. Granted, it does seem to owe a bit to the 2011 Sci Fi/Action Adventure film; Battle Los Angeles. (One could even say it owes just as much to War of the Worlds -any version- and Independence Day; the first one. This entertaining tale is 106 minutes of high paced action. It will keep you glued to the screen from the moment it starts.
*Hughes shares writing credit with James Beaufort who also plays 23 in the film.*
War Machine Story
The final recruits of a Ranger Assessment Selection Program come across an alien vessel while on their last maneuver. The spacecraft soon starts hunting them down. Cue a lot of running and very little gunning.
The Main Cast
Alan Ritchson is 81.
Stephan James is 7.
Blake Richardson is 15.
Dennis Quaid is Sheridan.
Jai Courtney is Squad Leader.
Jack Patten is 109.
Let’s Talk War Machine
This is an intense ride. Amazingly, despite using a idea from Jurassic Park (The first one.) think T-Rex here. *The earth shaking footsteps cause casings to bounce instead of ripples in a glass of water. But it is a nod, nonetheless.*
Everything snaps together like a Modern Warfare scenario with aliens as the “Big Bad.” In fact, there is only one real disconnect in the entire film. At one point, the squad on the “Death March,” after being shot to pieces by this alien war machine, stop on the edge of a precipice.
The camera moves back and we see a sheer drop; all solid rock and a definite no-go zone. As they stand at the edge, the alien machine forces them off the drop. Magically, the rockface is replaced with red dirt, boulders, trees; big and small, and the smaller team slide down. They are out of control and more casualties arise from this action.
While watching this scene, I was confused. What happened to the sheer rock face cliff drop? Where did this sloped dirt infested area come from? *As War Machine is a Netflix feature; it premiered on March 6, I could rewind and re-watch it repeatedly. It did not help to solve this mystery. Still, this affected the story not one whit. Annoying? Yes.
It Works
The FX, visual and practical, are great. They help to move the story on. Composer Dmitri Golovko gives us a thrumming score that also helps the film crack on. DP Aaron Morton makes each frame count. Editor Andy Canny snaps the entire thing together brilliantly and seamlessly.
The stunts? Look brilliant.
Patrick Hughes uses all the tricks up his sleeve to make this entire thing work.
Alan Ritchson is the new “action man” star, we didn’t know we needed. Coming into his own on the small screen as Reacher has made him a viable commodity in Hollywood.
Cameos
Quaid as Sheridan and Morales as Torres bring a sort of legitimacy to the whole thing. Jai Courtney, as the brother does what he does best; he lights up the screen when he is on.
The Verdict
Apart from waiting for the war machines to do an Artemos Prime, “Autobots Roll Out,” this is a solid bit of entertainment. Streaming on Netflix, the film earns a solid 5 stars. Is it blazingly original? Not really. However, the film races to the end and at no point do you feel the urge to stop watching.
The Trailer
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