A PITCH PERFECT PAIRING

Prime Video's Heads Of State is a great action-comedy that works due to the chemistry between Idris Elba and John Cena

- TATAT BUNNAG

What makes an action movie exciting and enjoyable, even when the story is simple or predictable? It doesn’t happen often, but every now and then, a film comes along that proves a formulaic plot doesn’t have to be a dealbreaker. Enter Prime Video's latest buddy action flick, Heads Of State a wild, high-energy, odd-couple romp that resurrects a familiar formula and injects it with sharp comedic timing and absurdly fun set pieces. Idris Elba and John Cena are the unexpected duo that make it all work.

Directed by Ilya Naishuller, Heads Of State opens with a clever premise. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Sam Clarke (Elba), and the President of the United States, Will Derringer (Cena), are bitter rivals. Their public antagonism threatens the historically close alliance between their countries. But things escalate quickly when the two world leaders become the targets of a powerful and elusive foreign enemy. With global security at risk and nowhere left to turn, Clarke and Derringer are forced to rely on the only people they can trust — each other. Teaming up with MI6 agent Noelle Bisset (Priyanka Chopra), they embark on a globetrotting mission to unravel a deadly conspiracy, avoid being killed at every turn and somehow work together long enough to save the world.