Carry-On turned out to be just the ticket for Netflix this past Christmas, pulling down nearly 100 million views in its first ten days on the streaming platform.
The movie stars Jason Bateman and Taron Egerton in a tense, if often ludicrous, showdown on Christmas Eve in LAX. It’s very much a Die Hard clone—or perhaps more accurately a Die Hard 2 clone—and if you turn off your brain, it’s a pretty fun watch (my review). Of course, it’s riddled with plot holes and silly conveniences, but again: If you turn your brain off it’s an exciting, tense thriller that keeps things moving at a steady clip.
The film was directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (The Commuter) and centers around TSA agent Ethan Kopek (Egerton) who finds himself in a tight situation when the mysterious Traveler (Bateman) blackmails him into letting a piece of carry-on luggage with a dangerous nerve agent through security. The 2-hour film is mostly Kopek trying—and largely failing—to stop this from happening. Meanwhile, LAPD detective Elena Cole (Danielle Deadwyler) is piecing together what’s going on, and soon makes her way to the airport to investigate.
It’s every bit as silly and over-the-top as it sounds, and one of my favorite YouTubers has made a brilliant spoof of the film. Ryan George, perhaps best known for his Pitch Meeting series, has knocked it out of the park again with his Carry-On Pitch Meeting. The series takes movies—including some I love dearly—and humorously picks them apart in a dialogue format between Screenwriter Guy and Producer Guy, both played by George. Check it out:
If you’re looking for another fun action movie on Netflix, Rebel Ridge was definitely better than Carry-On. It’s basically Reacher without all the killing. You can read my review of that movie right here.
Have you seen Carry-On? What did you think? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook. Also be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me here on this blog. Sign up for my newsletter for more reviews and commentary on entertainment and culture.
