Film Review – The Old Guard 2

July 2nd, 2025 | POSTED BY Allen Almachar

***Warning: This Review Contains Mild Spoilers***

Charlize Theron once again brings her unique set of action skills to The Old Guard 2 (2025). This is a sequel to the Covid-era hit The Old Guard (2020), which I wasn’t the biggest fan of. It had some decent set pieces and Theron (obviously) filled the shoes of an action hero with ease. But I found it to be mostly a drag – populated by uninteresting characters and shaky world building. Those issues remain (and are amplified) in this latest installment. This is an even more stripped down, blasé, and unexciting affair. Except for the return of a familiar action icon (more on that in a bit), this never shifts out of neutral. It sits in that hazy middle space between “It was fine,” to “Completely forgettable.”

It starts out well enough. Director Victoria Mahoney (with screenwriters Sarah L. Walker and Greg Rucka) construct an opening set piece where the warrior Andromache (or “Andy”) along with her team – Nile (KiKi Layne), Joe (Marwan Kenzari), Nicky (Luca Marinelli), and Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor) – storm a compound patrolled by armed henchmen. The editing does a fine job of bouncing between each of the team members as they take down their adversaries one by one. There’s a good mix of hand-to-hand combat, shoot outs, and chases to give the scene some much needed variety. There’s also the fact that several of the team members (excluding Andy and Copley) are immortal and can magically heal their injuries. There are some funny moments were broken ankles, severed limps, and gunshot wounds are immediately mended. It’s like most of the team are variations of Wolverine from The X-Men.

Unfortunately, the opening sequence is the best part of The Old Guard 2 – it’s all downhill from there. Once the narrative settles in, we learn that Andy is still dealing with the effects of giving up her immortality in the first film. But her existential crisis takes a backseat when two new enemies appear. Quynh (Veronica Ngo) has escaped from her watery prison and has set her sights of revenge on Andy. Helping her is Discord (Uma Thurman) – the first immortal – who has her own agenda to carry out involving the warriors. Along the way, Andy and her team reunite with Booker (Matthias Schoenaerts) who wishes to make for the wrongdoings he committed in the past. We also meet Tuah (Henry Golding), an ancient sage who has a history with both Andy and Discord. Tuah provides information necessary to possibly stop Quynh and Discord’s plans for destruction.

This is the first time since the Kill Bill films that Uma Thurman has taken on such an action-oriented character. And while it has been two decades since we last saw her as The Bride, Thurman slips back into that bad ass role like a comfy pair of socks. There’s also the added bonus of her playing a villain this time around, allowing the actor to flex her menacing skills to full effect. Sadly, she isn’t given enough opportunity to really make the most out of Discord. Thurman’s skills with a sword have not diminished, and on screen she makes a formidable opponent for Theron in stature and physicality. But she has such limited screentime that the full impact of her presence is never truly felt. Discord’s motivations are one dimensional at best and doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. There isn’t a lot of material for Thurman to sink her teeth into. The narrative is constructed as a countdown to the eventual face-off between Thurman and Theron. But we must power through a lot of mud to get there. Once we do, the confrontation is so short we wonder if it was all worth it.

Like the first film, The Old Guard 2 has several fascinating ideas that go unfulfilled. The relationship between Joe and Nicky is covered (like in the original) but doesn’t go anywhere. There are hints of a connection between Andy and Quynh that may run deeper than we might suspect, but that too leads to a dead end. At one point, Tuah brings us into a hidden chamber that contains all the secrets and history of the immortal warriors. This should be a revelatory moment, letting us in on how expansive and detailed this universe is. But the narrative doesn’t give us time to explore this place, to learn the intricate details or get a clue of how far back in time it all goes. Speaking of immortality, that too operates on flimsy rules. We never get our bearings on how it works, how an individual can receive or lose the power of healing, or how a person can transfer their immortality to another. The story moves swiftly over these bits, basically telling us not to worry about it too much. I don’t need every little nuance explained to me. However, it would be nice to have a deeper understanding of how immortality works so we can grasp the enormity of when one either has it or doesn’t.

Maybe the biggest sin the film commits is that it ends on a cliffhanger. It opts for that overused storytelling technique where everything comes to a halt, telling us to come back for the next installment to see how it all turns out. On one hand, I understand how a company like Netflix would want viewers sticking to their platform, especially when you have Charlize Theron and Uma Thurman on your roster. But on the flipside, stopping things so suddenly creates an unsatisfying feeling for viewers. At least The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Back To the Future Part II (1989) had a feeling of closure despite promising more excitement on the way. Heck, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) is notorious for being a bridge between the first and third entries, but even that had the mindfulness to pause at an appropriate spot on the timeline. The Old Guard 2 is different in that it stops right in midsentence, creating an awkward close that leaves us disoriented. 

If you liked The Old Guard, there’s a chance you will like The Old Guard 2. If you didn’t enjoy the first one, there’s nothing with the sequel that will win you over. Despite the presence of a legend like Uma Thurman, this never elevates above a mediocre action picture. Sure, you could describe this as mere junk food cinema, but those films can have a hit every once and awhile. Two chapters in so far and this franchise has yet to really make an impression.

Back to the Future II, Charlize Theron, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Greg Rucka, Henry Golding, Kiki Layne, Kill Bill, Luca Marinelli, Marwan Kenzari, Matthias Schoenaerts, Netflix, Sarah L. Walker, The Empire Strikes Back, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Old Guard, The Old Guard 2, The X-Men, Uma Thurman, Veronica Ngo, Victoria Mahoney