Why would Mark Wahlberg and an Oscar-winning Halle Berry, who have both earned critical acclaim for their work in some of the biggest Hollywood films, agree to do “The Union”?
The heavyweight talents are wasted in the spy action thriller, along with JK Simmons and Mike Colter.
Directed by Julian Farino (“Entourage” fame), the story centres on a secret government agency losing crucial information, placing the lives of many in danger, during a covert operation that goes pear-shaped.
Roxanne Hall (Berry) heads the operation on the ground while her boss, Tom Brennan (Simmons) is the team’s eyes and ear,s from their headquarters.
Aside from losing members of her team, Roxanne is determined to recover the sensitive information before it goes to the highest bidder.
Mike McKenna (Wahlberg), who was Roxanne’s high school sweetheart, is happily going about his routine life as a construction worker from New Jersey.
When he runs into her in their hometown 25 years later, he’s ecstatic. But the reunion is short-lived after she drugs him and he wakes in London, where he is recruited to be her side-kick on the damage-control mission, which sees them leaving a trail of bodies and damage across Europe.
This time, the CIA bullies its way into the mission as it has a vested interest in the case.
Nick Faraday (Colter), who is also Roxanne’s husband, resurfaces after it was presumed that he was one of the six team members who died on the first mission.
It isn’t long before Roxanne realises he has crossed over to the other side and, so, Mike and her find themselves on a cat-and-mouse chase with Nick.
In theory, this should be as compelling as “The Old Guard”, helmed by Charlize Theron, and “Extraction” with Chris Hemsworth. It isn’t.
The film’s script lacks substance. It comes across as a mad scramble to cram a lot of action while underpinning the story with comedy and romance.
“The Union” is a pedestrian offering that is a waste of time. It’s on Netflix if you are a sucker for punishment.