Polar
Netflix | Release Date (Streaming): January 25, 2019
6.4
USER SCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 239 Ratings
USER RATING DISTRIBUTION
Positive:
143
Mixed:
43
Negative:
53
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User Reviews

User scoreBy dateMost helpful
6
Morgan88Feb 16, 2019
If u want to have just mindless fun, and completely switch off, look no further. but storywise, it is not a great movie, Mads Mikkelsen and Katheryn Winnick are the only ones making this movie better. I think the director couldn't decide howIf u want to have just mindless fun, and completely switch off, look no further. but storywise, it is not a great movie, Mads Mikkelsen and Katheryn Winnick are the only ones making this movie better. I think the director couldn't decide how to handle this movie, some parts are way over the top comic book movie, but some parts are trying to be darker and more serious. Sadly, because of this the movie is all over the place. With a better director, this movie could have been so much better… Expand
5 of 5 users found this helpful50
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5
SenfbrotFeb 1, 2019
it was ok, but to cheesy in my opinion. Would be a 3 or 2 if Mads Mikkelsen wasn't in this movie
1 of 1 users found this helpful10
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6
CatmumJan 25, 2019
OMG, who cares about the movie, lol? Mads Mikkelsen's perfect stubble & mustache, not to mention his glorious chest hair. Grrrr....
Mr. Blut resembles a cross between Gary Busey & Elton John...I can see parts of John Wick, Sicario, RED; stillOMG, who cares about the movie, lol? Mads Mikkelsen's perfect stubble & mustache, not to mention his glorious chest hair. Grrrr....
Mr. Blut resembles a cross between Gary Busey & Elton John...I can see parts of John Wick, Sicario, RED; still entertaining, tho campy & implausible in parts.… Expand
4 of 8 users found this helpful44
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6
kajotaJan 26, 2019
When did movie critics become such prudes? This isn't a great movie and it's a bit too long but it's certainly worth watching. (especially since it just comes with Netflix account). Parts of the movie look fantastic - especially the winter scenes.
4 of 9 users found this helpful45
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5
Mathias01Jan 27, 2019
After seeing Mads Mikkelsen (who was fantastic in Hannibal) and Katheryn Winnick (who is also fantastic as Lagertha in Vikings) in the trailer I wanted to watch this. After watching it I'm left with a "meh" opinion. Mads was alright as DuncanAfter seeing Mads Mikkelsen (who was fantastic in Hannibal) and Katheryn Winnick (who is also fantastic as Lagertha in Vikings) in the trailer I wanted to watch this. After watching it I'm left with a "meh" opinion. Mads was alright as Duncan but I thought Katheryn's Vivian was totally wasted. She was just there and didn't really do much. The villain Blut was more of a clown than a menace. And Vanessa's Camille was simply the product of bad writing. And lastly I found the banter between the group of younger assassins irritating at times. I guess the movie makers decided to throw in gratuitous violence to cover up poor writing. This movie had some potential. Sadly it was wasted. 5/10… Expand
2 of 5 users found this helpful23
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5
imthenoobJan 28, 2019
I don't get the serious hate for it. The cast, led by Mads, does a well enough job to keep me interested but there was a lot of flaws. Pacing issues, Anti-climactic ending and just being too long in general. The action scenes were ok butI don't get the serious hate for it. The cast, led by Mads, does a well enough job to keep me interested but there was a lot of flaws. Pacing issues, Anti-climactic ending and just being too long in general. The action scenes were ok but nothing that really makes worth noting of. I also felt that a movie like this should have been a lot more fun than it was. There was a serious issue as to what the tone of the movie was and it never really lands the comedic or dramatic aspects of either.… Expand
1 of 4 users found this helpful13
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6
WillarJan 25, 2019
This could have been a pretty good movie. On one side it stars Mads Mikkelsen and has a decent ageing assassin/revenge plot but the rest of the film is all over the place. There is a comic bad guy played by comedian Matt Lucas, SillyThis could have been a pretty good movie. On one side it stars Mads Mikkelsen and has a decent ageing assassin/revenge plot but the rest of the film is all over the place. There is a comic bad guy played by comedian Matt Lucas, Silly offputting graphics and the film begins with a penis joke starring Johnny Knoxville. Overall if they had cut all the silly parts and carried on past the end continuing the revenge story it could have been pretty good.… Expand
1 of 6 users found this helpful15
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5
playa0789Mar 10, 2019
Similiar to John Wick has some good action scenes and choreography some of the characters fall flat but overall a decent out of theaters action film.
0 of 1 users found this helpful01
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6
DukeJonMar 3, 2023
This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A cut-price John Wick. Mads is great but the villains let this story down. The young assassins are unintentionally hilarious, and all get killed off too quickly. I can see what they were trying to do with Matt Lucas's character but it really doesn't work. He wants to be the joker but is instead a character from little britain. His camp comedy just doesn't work alongside all the gratuitous violence and gunfights. Also included a bizarre cameo by Richard Dreyfuss. Mads deserved better.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
All this user's reviews
5
Karmazyn83Apr 30, 2019
Polar was so OTT than it is comical. What did I watch, this was a question I was asking myself after 118 minutes. Over the top violence, over the top characters, over the top sexualization of some characters. Over the top villain. It almostPolar was so OTT than it is comical. What did I watch, this was a question I was asking myself after 118 minutes. Over the top violence, over the top characters, over the top sexualization of some characters. Over the top villain. It almost felt tacky. I watched it though. I liked some of it. It was definitely worth a watch and I could even watch a sequel but let me tell you this. You need to know what you are getting into here. It is style over logic, it is gore over typical holywood action politeness. It is John Wick on steroids, deformed action movie of highest degree. You need to like over idiotic movies, otherwise you wont go through it. Yeah 5/10.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
Voodoo123Mar 13, 2019
+Interesting action set pieces
+Cast deliver interesting character performances
-Plot is below par -Screenplay is weak Had a low expectation going in basically POLAR is a film that clearly wants to adpot the early 2000's graphic novel style+Interesting action set pieces
+Cast deliver interesting character performances
-Plot is below par
-Screenplay is weak

Had a low expectation going in basically POLAR is a film that clearly wants to adpot the early 2000's graphic novel style a la Sin CIty, 300 but misses a beat as it is clear the filmmaker lacks the chops to pull it off. So we end up with a stale version of this which seems to have all the same ingredients but feels undercooked. It's a shame I feel like if the pacing had been tweaked and maybe a less flamboyant lead villan chosen the film could've hit closer to its target. As it is Polar is a slow plod for a 90 min film (may have fallen asleep a little also).… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
mohamad91hkJun 29, 2019
"Polar" doesn't bring anything new to the genre, it's almost same action style as "John Wick", "Machete'' and "Killing Bill'' with a different story. The performance of Mads Mikkelsen was perfect, but his lack of backstory adds a layer of"Polar" doesn't bring anything new to the genre, it's almost same action style as "John Wick", "Machete'' and "Killing Bill'' with a different story. The performance of Mads Mikkelsen was perfect, but his lack of backstory adds a layer of mystery to his character.

If you are a fan of action movies that I mentioned above, then you've come to the right place.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
calderraAug 4, 2020
From the very first scene, it's clear the script writer doesn't speak native English. The low-rent camerawork and costuming don't help. A lot of scenes looks like a bunch of Eurotrash rejects from The Matrix stepped into a student film. AtFrom the very first scene, it's clear the script writer doesn't speak native English. The low-rent camerawork and costuming don't help. A lot of scenes looks like a bunch of Eurotrash rejects from The Matrix stepped into a student film. At one point the evil villain goes over his master plan. He literally just explains how retirement plans work, and then the Matrix rejects say "please explain". I think most 18-year-olds with a decent job can already follow the plot kid, but the director really thinks he sounds like a genius. It's like in a low-rent horror movie when a "scientist" tries to sound smart by reading a page from a gradeschool science book.

Director Jonas Akerlund is famous for his music videos which I've personally never thought were very well-made. They're usually just very weird, which works for music. But they weren't very technically well-shot. In a film, all his flaws are amplified.

It's sad because Mads Mikkelsen is amazing. Fans of his later performance in Hannibal already know how amazing Mads is as the sort of quiet intimidation that makes for a perfect assassin. He really acts the pants off his role, even while the Eurotrash around him stumble over lines and bad makeup and worse accents.

People will say "just turn off your brain". An enjoyable movie shouldn't have to involve absolutely insulting drivel. Here's a quick example. The bad guy needs exactly $29 million or whatever. So he decides to enact a giant plan to steal - wait for it - exactly $29 million. Except to do this, he's going to have to hire an absurd number of top-notch hitmen from around the world. That's going to cost, what, $29 million? So this job - at best - is going to break even? Come on. It isn't hard to write yourself out of this hole either - just make the payoff something absurd like a billion dollars. Why not?

Sigh. So this is a really stupid movie with annoying direction. Only watch it if you want to see Mads Mikkelsen kick some ass, and don't be afraid to fast forward the dumb Eurotrash nonsense between the action scenes. You won't miss anything.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
CosminAgafiteiFeb 6, 2019
Is a good film, Mads is a very good actor, but the story is a little bit off and the editing is poor.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
ViniciusBritoFeb 6, 2019
A institution of professional killers have a policy of retirement at age 50. When the employee retires, they recieve millions of dollars, and for the company to keep their money and pay their bills they kill every single one that reaches 50A institution of professional killers have a policy of retirement at age 50. When the employee retires, they recieve millions of dollars, and for the company to keep their money and pay their bills they kill every single one that reaches 50 years old, The Black Kaizer is one of them and he will have to fight and shoot to survive. Directed by Jonas Âkerlund and written by Jayson Rothwell.
This film is a lot of fun, honestly, it doesn't delivery anything new at all, it is a very known kind of movie that doesn't change anything, but not every film needs to do that, right? The story in here is beyond simple, it is there just to justify the next actions, it is a concept better than anything, a nice and interesting one, not necessary makes sense, but if you don't think much about it, the notion will pull the rope into a fine place. The story is before anything else based on missions, during the film you see some missions that the hitman, Black Kaizer, did in his life and when he gonna reach 50 years old, his company will do anything to kill him, so after his last mission, we see him going under covered and a team trying to find him and kill him. While all of that the montage give us some flashes of something that at first it doesn't make any sense, you not sure if that is a flash foward or a flash back, they keep showing that all the time, you can realise that it is something that torments the character but not until the very end it does make sense, it give us a interesting plot twist, heavy and you can feel some tension, but the way how it was build up was ok, nothing very spetacular, but it is, again, a good twist. The narrative goes mostly in two ways, while showing the main character and stuff around him, it is more dark and raw, but when it changes to the team, it gets full cartoonized, with animation kill and crazy stuff, i like the idea, but how it was made i'm not so sure, there are some moments where they change to one and to another and the scenes in each one are so brief that feels wrong, all the time after some point it goes to crazy to dark, and when they do it, it should feel natural in both, but sometimes it does bother, but not all the time. This is that kind of film with hard sex, giant full of blood violence and drugs all the time, for those that enjoy this is for sure a full plate of fun. One problem with this film is the villain, the company boss, that kind of villain that is fat, have zero athleticism, is arrogant and thinks he is own control all the time, typical **** villain for this kind of film, i couldn't dislike this kind of character more, it is so boring and weak, i believe that they choose this kind of guy to be the villain because he is the completely opposite from what our main guy is, but it is so ridiculous, the character is in a top place in his work, and in every one of his scenes with Katheryn's character i was like, "how is this dumb guy is still on top with she around?" because he is so weak that i can't imagine how she would still be there, Katheryn's character would have knocked him out long time ago.
Mads Mikkelsen is really fun to watch, you can totally see that he put his time into his works and incorporate the character pretty fine and you believe in him, you can get angusty in his eyes, along with tranquility, wich makes sense, because he is already doing that for so long, even with all of that, it is possible to feel and see a traumatization by some of his old actions, it is a good interpretation of a not very original character. Katheryn Winnick doesn't have much to do in here, she kinda have some screen time, but what she gotta do is repetitive, in a lot of moments it seems that she is doing the same thing as her last scene, but still, she was ok, she didn't had much material to work with.
The action in this film is really good, it is brutal and combined with Mads acting just get better with time. We got a lot of gore scenes with penetrations and blood all the time. There are creativity in some moments and lack of it in others. There are a lot of moments where you can see that someone could have shot in him easily, but come on, right? There are a lot of badass moments for the character, there is one specifically in a cabin that it is really well done, combining the action with the speaking aspect and not being sure of where is who, it is relly raw and fun, there is one or another moment that doesn't made sense, but it was pretty good.
Polar is a very fun film, with hardcore sex, brutal and raw violence, and a concept that makes the story keep going, it isn't much original or different from other movies that are like this one, but it is definely a must watch for those who enjoy those aspects that i mention.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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5
goncalocoutoFeb 2, 2019
O elenco não é o melhor, mas Mikkelsen conseguiu me manter interessado no filme. Apesar dos problemas de ritmo, da longa duração e das razoáveis cenas de ação, "Polar" não é assim tão mau.
5/10
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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4
selmanaAug 19, 2019
https://sineg.net/2019/02/06/polar-film-uzerine-konusalim/ Ordinary movie but good commentary
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
CalledByCthulhuOct 16, 2020
Mads M and Matt Lucas compete to steal the show in John Wick clone. Put your brain into neutral and enjoy.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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5
joshwashereOct 21, 2022
There are some excellent fight scenes and cinematography, but the characters are terribly written and hard to watch. The torture and sex could have been good but they added nothing to the story and were obviously just to make the movieThere are some excellent fight scenes and cinematography, but the characters are terribly written and hard to watch. The torture and sex could have been good but they added nothing to the story and were obviously just to make the movie "cool". I really enjoyed the action so it's a shame. There's a few videos online that show you all of the kills in Polar - that's a much quicker way to enjoy the movie.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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6
Emily909Feb 23, 2022
Very stylised action and two contrasting colour palette. Mads acting was great but tonely inconsistent.
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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