AFTER last year's more sombre heist thriller Wrath Of Man, British director Guy Ritchie heads back to familiar irreverent action territory with Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre.
Borrowing from the Mission: Impossible franchise, this one has Ritchie's long-time collaborator Jason Statham returning in the lead role.
The action star plays kickass international man of mystery, Orson Fortune, whose expertise is in using unconventional methods and cunning stratagems to get the job done.
A shadowy intelligence agency headed by Nathan Jasmine (Cary Elwes) is tasked by the British government with retrieving a stolen billion-dollar, world-threatening device.
Jasmine hires the reluctant super spy to get the device back before it is sold in the underground market to the highest bidder by wealthy arms dealer Greg Simmonds (Hugh Grant).
Fortune and a team made up of snarky tech expert Sarah Fidel (Aubrey Plaza) and all-round handyman J.J. Davies (Bugzy Malone) travel the globe on a mission to save the world.
To execute their plan with guile, they blackmail Hollywood superstar Danny Francesco (Josh Hartnett) to serve as an undercover operative in order to get close to Simmonds, who is a big fan of the actor.
With the fate of the world hanging in the balance, the team will also have to contend with a rival bent on getting his hands on the much-sought-after device, dubbed the Handle.
Statham does what he does best in the action realm and lights up the screen with his charismatic presence and impactful blows.
Fans of the actor will not be disappointed since and the fight scenes are spirited and effective, even if the firefights involving guns do seem to meander a bit.
Grant, who made an indelible impression in Ritchie's 2019 gangster action-comedy movie The Gentlemen, continues to impress in this one and steals the scene whenever he's onscreen.
Plaza gets all of the sassy one-liners, although she's kind of an acquired taste so some cinemagoers might find her irritating after a while.
All in all, Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre has all of the hallmarks of a Guy Ritchie movie.
From the frantic action, quick cuts and impressive ensemble cast to the sharp and witty back-and-forth banter, it delivers the familiar goods.
But unfortunately, the confluence of elements does not really make for a top-tier movie from the director, whose numerous high watermarks include the already referenced The Gentlemen, as well as classics, such as Snatch, Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels and RocknRolla.
Despite that, and some predictable twists and turns, Operation Fortune: Ruse De Guerre is still an enjoyable and fun movie to watch in the cinema as long as you don't expect too much.
NOW SHOWING
OPERATION FORTUNE: RUSE DE GUERRE
DIRECTED BY Guy Ritchie
STARRING Jason Statham, Hugh Grant, Aubrey Plaza, Josh Hartnett, Cary Elwes, Bugzy Malone
DURATION 115 minutes
RATING 16