THE STORY – After hostiles abduct former soldier Sean Walker to locate a nuclear warhead, the CIA suspects his involvement. Later, Walker and his allies plot to reclaim the bomb and clear their names.
THE CAST – John Cena, Jessica Biel, Sam Richardson, Arturo Castro, Teyonah Parris, Danai Gurira & Golshifteh Farahani
THE TEAM – Sam Hargrave (Director) & David Coggeshall (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 126 Minutes
After the success of “Barbie,” Mattel announced several film adaptations of its most iconic toys, much to the chagrin of cynical moviegoers. Many argued that it was learning the exact wrong lesson from “Barbie,” that the film did not succeed because movies based on toys are beloved, but because it was the passion project of a talented auteur who tapped into what Barbie meant in the social consciousness. Whether you treasured your Barbies growing up, felt you rejected gender expectations by not playing with Barbies, or thought Barbies were too “girly” to own, you had some kind of opinion on Barbie. The same doesn’t apply to Matchbox cars, which you either felt nostalgic for because you owned them as a kid or were completely indifferent to because they weren’t your preferred toy.
“Matchbox: The Movie” tries its best to instill an emotional connection to these cars in its main characters, who were best friends in middle school and called themselves the Matchbox Gang. But from the jump, it fails to develop the friendship that the film’s climactic moments hinge on and justify its own existence as a Matchbox movie. The opening few scenes are admittedly charming; it is cute to see these kids delight in their youth and express themselves through the Matchbox vehicle of their choosing. But the film gives this middle school friend group only a measly seven minutes, most of which is spent watching Sean pine over his friend Aimee. We hardly learn the names or personalities of the other members of the Matchbox Gang, as a monologue about how Matchbox cars got their origin is deemed more important than establishing the relationships that form the emotional core of this film. Before you know it, the film flashes forward to the present, and its flimsy foundation struggles to keep the main conflict afloat.
Twenty-eight years after Sean (John Cena) moves away from his best friends, he works as a covert CIA agent, carrying out the U.S. government’s dirty work. The rest of the Matchbox Gang keeps in touch to this day—the film’s faith in middle school friendships might be its biggest stretch in believability—and meet up for drinks after their mentor’s funeral. Sean attends the funeral and can’t resist his old friends, especially Aimee (Jessica Biel), the crush he never got over. Unfortunately, the good times don’t last long, and Sean inadvertently drags his friends into an international crisis.
What follows is a solid film that looks better than your average straight-to-streaming action flick. The lighting in certain scenes is surprisingly inspired, giving color to a film that could have easily been as washed out as most Hollywood blockbusters. The fight sequences are also enjoyable enough, as the environments and objects around the Matchbox Gang make for action scenes that take occasionally unexpected turns. But as ridiculous as it feels to critique a popcorn movie for lacking narrative depth, it’s hard to overlook dysfunctional writing when the spectacle happens on a computer screen.
You could argue that “Matchbox: The Movie” honors the spirit of the toys it is based on with audacious action set pieces and nonsensical plots that mirror how kids play with these miniature vehicles. However, the problem is that this film wants its cake and to eat it too without baking the ingredients first. To capture that childhood joy of playing with Matchbox cars, the film calls back to fond memories that were never shown or even implied to the audience during crucial scenes. It is also frustratingly middle-of-the-road: it doesn’t take itself seriously enough to fully indulge in the adrenaline rush of its set pieces, but it takes itself too seriously to be a legitimately fun romp. The concept of characters who are completely terrified that they are in an action movie has some solid humor, but it doesn’t quite go anywhere.
“Matchbox: The Movie” never quite justifies its existence. If you cut the corny, ham-fisted references to playing with Matchbox cars as a kid, the film arguably improves greatly. It infuriatingly lacks identity, as its blend of comedy and action lessens the impact of both. It might be slightly better than throwaway films of its ilk like “Red Notice” and “The Gray Man” because of its moments of visual flair. Still, it relies too heavily on the audience’s emotional attachment to a friend group you never really buy, making it out of ninth grade. With the sincerest apologies to those with a deep connection to Matchbox cars, “Matchbox: The Movie” just isn’t up to par.
