Review: Lift has the recipe for a great action flick - but doesn't hit the heights you want it to

Kevin Hart and Gugu Mbatha-Raw attend the "LIFT" Photocall at The Corinthia Hotel on January 11, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

Gugu Mbatha-Raw always adds a touch class to anything film of television series she has been in.

She wowed us all in Belle and was heartbreakingly brilliant in Apple TV’s The Morning Show, but unfortunately not even Mbatha-Raw’s impressive action skills could save Lift – the latest big budget action film from Netflix.

It was such a disappointment because it had all the ingredients to be good fun. The synopsis reads: “A professional thief and his expert crew attempt the ultimate heist: stealing $500 million in gold from a vault on a plane — 40000 feet in the air.” What’s not to love about that?

Ocean’s Eleven meets Mission: Impossible anyone?Yes please.

Throw in the normally likeable screen presence of Kevin Hart, 6ft 3in Vincent D'Onofrio as a ‘master of disguise’, a villainous Jean Reno, a stern Sam Worthington and it should have been so good.

But Hart lacked the Clooney-charm to lead crew, no-one came even near to Tom Cruise level of stunts and the less said about the special effects the better. And the fact everyone had to explain the whole plot every step of the way was just plain annoying.

Bring on Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part II as quickly as possible to take away the bad taste of this film.