"The last time we saw Cameron Diaz on screen, it was way back in 2014," said Benjamin Lee in The Guardian.
"That year saw her lost in the juvenile comedies 'The Other Woman' and 'Sex Tape', before being horrendously miscast in a dud remake of 'Annie'; and, not long after, she chose to retire, perhaps feeling as glum over the quality of her films as those of us stuck watching them." Now, however, she has returned in the Netflix action-comedy "Back in Action", in which she and Jamie Foxx play a couple who have given up their exciting lives as spies to raise a family in the suburbs – only to be "sucked back in" when their cover is blown.
'Comfortable chemistry'
The film is pretty formulaic, and it does make you wish that a fraction of its stars' salaries "had been siphoned off for a script doctor", but Diaz is as charming as ever, and she shares "a comfortable chemistry" with Foxx, her old friend.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This is a three-star film "made for those times at which only a three-star film will do", said Robbie Collin in The Telegraph: "vivaciously, even triumphantly, OK", it is "ideal entertainment for an afternoon or evening when the eyes and ears say 'yes' and the brain says 'thanks, but I'll probably just leave you guys to it'".
'Wasted in insubstantial roles'
Though it does feel "highly processed", you may feel, as you watch Diaz and Foxx "do their thing", a bit sad "that Hollywood ever gave up" on easy-to-please movies like this.
You'll see the "third-act 'twist' coming a mile off", said Ben Travis in Empire, and Andrew Scott and Kyle Chandler are "wasted in insubstantial roles". But Back in Action is a fun, "fizzily watchable" treat. A word to Diaz: "Next time don't leave it so long, eh?"
-
Political cartoons for December 14Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include a new White House flag, Venezuela negotiations, and more
-
Heavenly spectacle in the wilds of CanadaThe Week Recommends ‘Mind-bending’ outpost for spotting animals – and the northern lights
-
Facial recognition: a revolution in policingTalking Point All 43 police forces in England and Wales are set to be granted access, with those against calling for increasing safeguards on the technology
-
Heavenly spectacle in the wilds of Canada
The Week Recommends ‘Mind-bending’ outpost for spotting animals – and the northern lights
-
It Was Just an Accident: a ‘striking’ attack on the Iranian regimeThe Week Recommends Jafar Panahi’s furious Palme d’Or-winning revenge thriller was made in secret
-
Singin’ in the Rain: fun Christmas show is ‘pure bottled sunshine’The Week Recommends Raz Shaw’s take on the classic musical is ‘gloriously cheering’
-
Holbein: ‘a superb and groundbreaking biography’The Week Recommends Elizabeth Goldring’s ‘definitive account’ brings the German artist ‘vividly to life’
-
The Sound of Music: a ‘richly entertaining’ festive treatThe Week Recommends Nikolai Foster’s captivating and beautifully designed revival ‘ripples with feeling’
-
‘Furious Minds: The Making of the MAGA New Right’ by Laura K. Field and ‘The Dream Factory: London’s First Playhouse and the Making of William Shakespeare’ by Daniel SwiftFeature An insider’s POV on the GOP and the untold story of Shakespeare’s first theater
-
Henri Rousseau: A Painter’s Secretsfeature Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia, through Feb. 22
-
Homes with great fireplacesFeature Featuring a suspended fireplace in Washington and two-sided Parisian fireplace in Florida
