Director:William Eubank
Writers:David FrigerioWilliam Eubank
Stars:Liam HemsworthRussell CroweLuke Hemsworth
Land of Bad Full Movie Review
Upcoming Writer/Director William Eubank debuted with Love and followed it up with The Signal, in both cases fashioning minimalist budgets into high concept sci-fi and offering hope for his future. Almost a decade after his debut he finally got a shot at the big(get) time with Underwater, a flawed but frequently thrilling underwater survival sci-fi horror flick headlined by Kristen Stewart that definitely deserved more attention than it got, bombing during COVID times and leaving Eubank circling the drain with a Paranormal Activity sequel next.
Returning to a project he'd written and heavily researched a decade earlier, whilst developing The Signal, he finally got a green light and an insanely small sub-$20 million budget, working with local Australian incentives (and a largely Australian cast) to realise it. And the legwork paid off, as did the home-grown enthusiasm on the cast front, resulting in a small little military actioner that enjoys well-staged, bomb-dropping setpieces, some pretty damn brutal confrontations, and surprisingly on-point performances from the likes of Russell Crowe and, even increasingly improbably, Luke Hemsworth, Liam Hemsworth and Ricky Whittle. There's no possible reason why any of these ingredients should have worked, but they do, and the result is 110 minutes of tense, thrilling work, with just enough meat to its characterisation and a modestly original edge to its drone-support angle.
The pitch is that an unlucky newbie TACP (Tactical Air Control Party), who works in tandem with drone captain piloting an orbiting drone, gets attached as JTAC (Joint Terminal Attack Controller) to a clandestine Delta Force mission that goes to hell in a hand basket, seeing him on the run, pursued by heavily armed enemies, with only the drone Captain to support and guide him. So far, so very much like a modern Lone Survivor-informed updating of the Bat 21's classic "behind enemy lines Gene Hackman gets aerial support from Danny Glover's circling pilot" premise. But Land of Bad doesn't get hung up on the preconceptions generated by its pitch, soon dispelling those with some decent, almost Predator-esque team camaraderie, a razor-focussed plot and eyes-on-the-prize mission, and tactics that feel plausibly authentic.
Once the bombs drop, you get the feeling that there's something a little different on offer here too, with Eubanks working behind the scenes with real-life JTACs to run multiple bombing simulations and "nine lines" close air support, and bringing all of that experience to bear here. Calling in "danger close" strikes becomes this film's M.O. and it's superb, with a succession of expertly-staged action setpieces defying its tiny budget.
Even more impossibly, Eubanks draws a decent performances out of not one but two of the lesser Hemsworths. Liam, known for his dull thuds in Hunger Games, swiftly dispatched in Expendables 2, hardly done any favours by taking on Independence Day: Resurgence, here making for a surprisingly competent lead, clearly enjoying his second pairing with Russell Crowe (they previously did the engaging if throwaway Poker Face, helmed by Crowe too) and pretty convincing in the action and characterisation. His brother Luke's there in support, playing one of the Delta group, and, after six years working on Westworld, he seems pretty comfortable taking to the bigger screen. Milo Ventimiglia (Heroes, This is Us, Rocky Balboa) is a very good choice for the Delta lead, but the real shock comes with Hollyoaks' Ricky Whittle - who previously seemed so regularly out of his depth on the ill-fated adaptation of American Gods, but is well used here. And Russell Crowe? This is likely not the first time his name has been attached to something you'd assume he'd just phone in for a paycheque (look at the Vespa-riding fun he had putting his own spin on the unabashedly silly The Pope's Exorcist), but, right from the early scenes with his character meticulously ordering coffee pods, Crowe goes full tilt committing to a genuine character here, and it pays dividends. Indeed, they're all well chosen but, almost insanely, Crowe makes you wonder whether anybody else could have possibly brought this much to this little of a part.
