‘The Wrecking Crew’ movie review: Jason Momoa, Dave Bautista enjoy this action comedy

We first see James (Dave Bautista) sitting peacefully cross-legged underwater, while the others give up and go to the surface, panting. Elsewhere in Hawaii, a man posts a package and a van crushes it.

James, a Navy SEAL instructor who trains cadets in underwater breath-holding and endurance training, receives a phone call telling him that his father Walter (Brian L. Keulana) was killed in a hit and run.

James is a stable, quiet family man and a stark contrast to his half-brother Johnny (Jason Momoa), who is raising hell as a policeman on a reservation in Oklahoma. We first meet Johnny who is riding home on a bike with an angry girlfriend Valentina (Morena Baccarin), who is angry at him for forgetting her birthday. He makes matters worse by trying to sweet-talk her in Spanish when she’s Brazilian and should be using Portuguese.

The brothers have not spoken for 10 years and James is unwilling to call Johnny to inform him of their father’s death. James’s wife, Leila (Roimata Fox) informs Johnny of her father’s death. James was very surprised when Johnny came to the funeral. A visit from a bunch of bloodthirsty Yakuza seeking a package posted by Walter may have convinced Johnny that there was more to his father’s death than a simple hit and run.

A scene from the film Photo Credit: Prime Video

Once Johnny is in Hawaii, he stirs things up as much as possible and soon both Johnny and James are fighting the Yakuza, taking on the local syndicate under the influence of Mr. (Branscombe Richmond) has a strict regime, and several villains are searching Walter’s past for clues to his death.

There’s an oily hotel magnate, Marcus Robichaux (Clais Bang), Nakamura (Miyawi) and his Yakuza goons as they wield power and some shady casino deals. The police, led by Carl Reinert (Stephen Root), continue to think that Walter’s death was accidental.

Amidst all the running around, shooting and explosions, the brothers work out their differences. Johnny spends time with James’ son Kai (Joshua Tuivavalagi) and daughter Lani (Maia Kealoha) who wants to braid Johnny’s hair.

Pica (Jacob Batalon), who helped Walter with technical stuff, helps Johnny, albeit reluctantly. Johnny’s cousin, Nanny (Frankie Adams), also helps; His job as an assistant to Governor Peter Maho (Temuera Morrison), proves useful in getting quick information.

A scene from the film Photo Credit: Prime Video

destroyer team Moves at the speed of light with brilliantly choreographed action sequences (the helicopter chase is out of this world) and sharp one-liners.

Several pop anthems add another level of entertainment, including Guns N’ Roses’ ‘Paradise City’, Air Supply’s ‘Making Love Out of Nothing at All’, Duran Duran’s ‘Ordinary World’ and Billy Idol’s ‘Eyes Without a Face’. The final punch-up uses RZA’s ‘Like a Drum’ to great effect.

Hawaii looks beautiful and the chemistry between Momoa and Bautista is fantastic. While the concept isn’t overly original, it delivers a great execution of every tried-and-tested action-movie beat. destroyer team Provides a pleasant escape from the drudgery of the real world.

The Wrecking Crew is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video