The Union
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ (out of 5 stars)
When you think Hollywood has found every angle for the secret spy agency, they find a new option. The Union is an undercover organisation made up of blue-collar workers. These operatives operate under the radar since most people don’t notice them despite their high-vis vests and tool belts.
Mike McKenna (Mark Wahlberg) has lived in New Jersey all of his life and works on the bridges that lead to other parts of the world, but he remains in the community he grew up in all his life. Then Roxanne Hall (Halle Berry) walks back into his life and disrupts his ordinary existence in the Jersey borough. His former girlfriend is one of the lead operatives in this undercover group of former working-class workers, and she needs Mike’s help. They need someone who isn’t in the system to infiltrate an auction dealing with software that will jeopardise all worldwide counterintelligence agents. Despite his eventual commitment to the cause, the question remains if this bridge worker will be up to the task in time.
As Mark Wahlberg continues to mine the lucrative realm of streaming services with his penchant for action comedies, his production company has found an unexpected winner with Netflix. This partnership has found the right combination of concept and talent to hammer out an entertaining and semi-original idea that will appeal to the mainstream audience looking for a straightforward combination of laughs, action and romance. Admittedly, it is hard to think of Halle Berry and Luke Cage’s Mike Colter as former blue-collar workers. Still, the chemistry between this ensemble cast makes this element a minor issue. Wahlberg and Berry have the necessary connection to unite the central theme. Academy Award winner J. K. Simmons (Whiplash) looks like he is having too much fun for one actor. He manages to lead this unlikely band of spies, including The Watchman’s Jackie Earle Haley, through this operation on the streets of London.
The Union contains all of the standard components of this genre with enough twists and spins to make it worth discovering on Netflix. Each character adds the necessary element to make this all come together despite the predictable nature of the screenplay. The streaming service has given new life to the mid-level action comedy that will again appeal to the blue-collar worker and the mainstream audience yearning for these films.
Reel Dialogue: Valuing the ‘invisible worker’
1 Timothy 2:1-4 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Saviour, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Many films celebrate the grand and exciting people of the world, but there is something to be said of those who work behind the scenes. In The Union and in this short passage from the Apostle Paul, there is something to be said about workers who work in the background. Something that can be celebrated and gives way to a special connection with life and even God.
These are the workers who do the work that needs to be done but may never be fully appreciated. Whatever their motivation, there does come a time when society should show gratitude for the work that so few are willing to do.
