Back in Action Review: Cameron Diaz Returns After 10 Years With Exclusive Comeback

Back in Action

Director: Seth Gordon

Editor's Rating:
3

Pros

• Cameron Diaz delivers a captivating performance.
• Exciting action sequences keep the audience engaged.
• Direction by Michael Bay brings intensity and thrill.
• The soundtrack complements the film’s high-energy tone.

Cons

• The storyline is predictable at times.
• Some dialogue feels forced and unnatural.
• Character development takes a backseat to action.
• The plot relies heavily on explosive action rather than emotional depth.

Back in Action Review highlights Cameron Diaz’s highly anticipated return to the big screen.

She hasn’t been in a movie since 2014, which is a long time ago. The star had been so captivating in Being John Malkovich, My Best Friend’s Wedding, and There’s Something About Mary. But she had stopped making movies after a trio of bland, formulaic movies that were what we had come to expect from her at that point in her career. Diaz used to be able to easily switch between dark and light, as well as big and small. She had smoothed out any of her more interesting edges to become one of the highest-paid but least interesting stars in the business. In that same year, she was wasted in the silly comedies The Other Woman and Sex Tape.

Then, she was horribly miscast in a terrible remake of Annie, and soon after, she quit acting. She may have been just as unhappy with the quality of her movies as the people who had to watch them.

The news of her return, after ten years of focusing on family and an organic wine brand, came at a good time, since the movie business is still having a hard time finding younger, equally bright stars to replace the ones that have already been there. A lot of actors from that time have done well on Netflix, like Adam Sandler, Jennifer Lopez, and Jessica Alba. It seemed like the easiest way for Diaz to reconnect with her fans, teaming up with her Annie co-star Jamie Foxx for an action comedy that will appeal to a wide audience.

The movie, which is called “Back in Action,” is a lazy way to get back into the game, but it’s only a half-victory at best. Even though it could mean that Diaz still has that magic, it also means that she needs to be much more careful about how she shares it.

Watch Back in Action Trailer

But she’s not the only one who thinks action comedy is the best way. Fans have also liked Chris Evans and Ana de Armas, Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling, John Cena and Alison Brie, Kaley Cuoco and David Oyelowo, Halle Berry and Mark Wahlberg, and then Michelle Monaghan and Mark Wahlberg, even though critics haven’t always agreed (Gosling and Blunt got a new rating for The Fall Guy, for example). Say something, shoot something, kiss someone, and do it again. This pattern is getting old for those of us who are still awake and paying attention, especially since attractive stars get to enjoy the simple pleasures of life while everything else suffers.

The director, Seth Gordon, has made a bunch of average, lose-lose action comedies, including The Lost City. He wrote it while directing Identity Thief and Baywatch, and the way the two genres are smashed together is just embarrassing. It’s not enough to see a couple and then a family talk about screen time or picking up the kids from school while there’s a car chase or shootout going on. As we watch Action Comedy Movie, most of the well-choreographed action scenes are accompanied by discordant, wink-wink love songs like Etta James’s “At Last” or Nat King Cole’s “L-O-V-E.” These songs are played in such a smug and familiar way that it all starts to feel like a parody.

While Cameron Diaz and Foxx may do well without any real shame, the rest of the cast isn’t quite so lucky. The actor who plays the main bad guy, Andrew Scott, seems the least serious. Glenn Close, who plays Diaz’s British mother, and Jamie Demetriou, who plays her strange love interest, are not nearly as lucky. They both give over-the-top pantomime performances that try to steal scenes but only make us laugh.

Where can I watch the movie Back in Action?

Streaming on Netflix starting Friday, Jan. 17. The movie begins with Diaz and Jamie Foxx as a pair of spies on a mission, and the first few minutes might leave you with a wrong impression.

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