Heads of State
Heads of State
Stars: John Cena, Idris Elba, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Carla Gugino, Jack Quaid, Stephen Root and Paddy Considine
Director: Ilya Naishuller
Scriptwriters: Josh Appelbaum, Andre Nemed and Harrison Query from a story by Harrison Query
Composer: Steven Price
Cinematography: Ben Davis
Metro-Goldwyn -Mayer/Amazon Prime Video
Rating: PG 13 for violence
Running Length: 112 Minutes
Who would have thought wrestler John Cena would also have an acting career. In this film he plays Will Derringer, a film star and new president of the United States. (Does this sound familiar as in Jesse Ventura becoming governor of Minnesota?) At the same time, movie star Idris Elba plays the Minister of Britain, Sam Clarke. The two men work well together, especially in action sequences, and there is always a touch of humor nearby.
As the story goes, President Derringer goes to England to meet the Minister of Britain, Clarke and they don’t hit it off. At the same time, there is danger afoot about a foreign arms dealer, Gradov (Paddy Considine) who is being hunted by both Great Britain and U.S. agents. The goal is to get the link that has important surveillance information for something called Echelon. The two Heads of State are on a plane that is attacked and they parachute down, then are presumed gone for good. In the mix, is Priyanka Chopra Jonas, who plays Bissett, an agent who is supposed to protect both Heads of State. And there you have the plot. How to foil the bad guys and protect the two politicians.
What is a plot without action---both Heads of State are handy with guns, can fight, and hide in a sheep truck. There are double crosses, false information, action sequences, and Elba driving a fire truck. The stars, including Chopra Jonas, do action well, are handy with weapons and charge into situations right and left. The acting performance are rather good, but someone who steals their scene is Jack Quaid, who plays Comer, a CIA agent.
All in all, “Heads of State” is a rather tongue-in-cheek action comedy combining a champion wrestler who is also an actor, and a “Handsomest Man” contest winner who is a major film star. They do make a team, so perhaps, this is the first in a series of films? There is always a fire truck somewhere to drive or an airplane in flight to jump from. Just enough mayhem here to hold it together, and watch those vice presidents.
Three Tocks
Copyright 2025 Marie Asner
