Charlize Theron and Uma Thurman meet on screen, but instead of an epic duel, we get a drawn-out series with a cliffhanger that evokes not interest but fatigue. More about the film 'The Old Guard 2' in our review.

There are films that make you want to live longer. And then there are those that make you appreciate the finiteness of life—just so you don't have to watch pointless sequels. The Old Guard 2 falls into the second category.

In the first film, Netflix briskly mixed ancient vignettes with modern action, and at the center was the indomitable but weary Andromache—a woman who could explain with a single glance that immortality is not a gift but an eternal burden. Back then, the film felt fresh, albeit not without rough edges, as I wrote in my review. Five years later, the second part hits the screens—and now eternity seems to drag on especially long.

Andromache (aka Andy, still played by the charismatic Charlize Theron) and her team of immortals are once again forced to save humanity—this time from a threat that, by all genre laws, should be the 'most dangerous.' New faces join the old acquaintances: the mysterious Tua (Henry Golding) and the equally mysterious Discord (Uma Thurman), and from the depths of the ocean returns Quynh (Veronica Ngo)—the very friend who was locked in an iron maiden for 500 years and sent to drown alone at the bottom of the ocean.

This time, the focus is not on fighting an enemy but on internal squabbles: who betrayed whom, who owes what, what to do when a former friend becomes an enemy, and immortality is something that can be lost and regained. At some point, everything devolves into a dreary 'who is more immortal than whom.'

'The Old Guard 2' feels like a long but not very interesting episode before the finale of some TV series. The beginning is brisk, but by the middle you realize there will be no finale—only a promise of another part. Netflix, enough with these 'teasers' for a sequel; films should have a beginning and an end, even if you're planning a trilogy!

There is action, but it's... slow. As if everyone is tired and fighting out of a sense of duty. Shaky camera and editing don't add drive. In times when you can watch <a href="/b/post/17394">Ballerina</a> in parallel, such fight choreography looks like a mockery.

Alexander Popov

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Open material

Even Charlize Theron, who usually carries any action film, looks here as if she's counting the days until the end of filming. The others either disappear for half the film or appear in the background—just so you don't forget they exist.

And Discord is some kind of joke at the name level and at the same time an antagonist of the 'I'm just bored, so I'm a villain' class. Motivation? No, haven't heard. Charisma? Lost somewhere between takes. And even the scene where Uma Thurman is handed a katana again doesn't feel like a revelation: it's more like a lazy wink to the audience, like 'see, we remember.'

I cautiously praised the first part for its solid genre nature. But the creators of the sequel somehow decided that the viewer can be fed the same thing, only without spark. Instead of exploring the theme of immortality from a new angle (or at least playing it out in action episodes), the film treads water. Drama? There is, but at the level of 'I'm no longer immortal, now I'm just tired.' Existential questions? Only from the viewer: 'Why am I watching this?'

Do you like films with an open ending and a promise of a third part (which you most likely won't want to watch)? Then this sequel is for you. Prefer dynamics and fresh ideas—better rewatch the first part. It had drive and characters you wanted to follow.