My quick rating – 6.7/10. Heads of State is exactly the kind of over-the-top, no-brakes buddy action-comedy the world could use right now. Directed by Ilya Naishuller (of Nobody fame, sequel coming next month), this Amazon Prime popcorn flick takes an already entertaining concept — the US President and the UK Prime Minister are frenemies — and drops it into a blender set to high speed with guns, globe-trotting, and some surprisingly sharp banter. The result? A cocktail that goes down easily, even if you’re pretty sure your brain cells are being asked to temporarily clock out.
John Cena stars as President Brackett, a larger-than-life former action star (hmm…foreshadowing?) who somehow ended up in the Oval Office. Idris Elba plays Prime Minister Cooper, a sharp, scowling statesman who’s perpetually two eye rolls away from needing a neck brace. Their public rivalry has become international tabloid fodder, threatening the age-old alliance between the US and UK. But when a mysterious power player puts a target on both their backs, the only way out is together, whether they like it or not. Enter Priyanka Chopra Jonas as Noel, a whip-smart MI6 agent who somehow manages to keep these two beefcakes alive while still looking flawless.
Elba and Cena are easily the movie’s greatest asset. Ever since they traded insults and bullets in The Suicide Squad, these two have had a palpable, goofy bro chemistry. Here, they’re dialing it up to eleven. Whether they’re arguing over who gets the better bulletproof car or literally carrying each other through a Paris shootout, they’re so entertaining that you forget how absolutely absurd all of this is. The movie smartly lets them riff, cramming in plenty of quips between the hailstorms of bullets.
Speaking of absurd, this plot is one long string of convenient narrow escapes, high-octane car chases through quaint European streets, and third-act speeches about unity that somehow land without feeling cringe. It’s helped by the film’s refusal to take itself seriously for even a second. The humor is broad and sometimes straight-up cartoonish, but it knows it. Watching Cena’s president solemnly dodge a rocket launcher while trying to Tweet is a joke that basically writes itself.
Priyanka Chopra gets to flex some serious action chops, handling close-quarters fights and smirking one-liners with equal skill. If Elba and Cena are the chaotic frat boys of global diplomacy, she’s the long-suffering professional who saves the day while barely bothering to sigh at their idiocy. And let’s not skip a classic bit of humor with Jack Quaid, who obliterates everything in his path.
Visually, Heads of State is a treat. The outdoor shoots across France, Serbia, and Italy give the movie a bright, globe-hopping sheen that complements the ridiculous stakes. Everything pops, from stylish safehouses in Trieste to farm-field brawls in Serbia.
Ultimately, this is a movie that argues that if the leaders of the free world just became besties, we’d all be fine, and honestly, who doesn’t want to believe that for two hours? Heads of State is goofy, slick, and brimming with charm. It’s exactly the kind of shameless fun you stream on a Friday night with pizza, where world peace is a punchline and nobody’s pretending otherwise. And in this climate? I’ll take that deal any day.
This one is currently a Prime Video exclusive. Here is a JustWatch link for the rest later on.