I will continue to update this post as reviews come in.
Rotten Tomatoes: Certified Fresh
Critics Consensus: Unapologetically leaning into its own pulpy excess, Fuze detonates as a stylish thriller with energy, craft, and twists to spare.
| Critics | Score | Number of Reviews | Average Rating (Unofficial) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Critics | 82% | 51 | 6.50/10 |
| Top Critics | 83% | 18 |
Metacritic: 58 (15 Reviews)
Sample Reviews:
Ross McIndoe, Slant Magazine 2.5/4 – The film is much more interested in the logistics of bomb defusal than any of its characters.
Sandra Hall, The Age (Australia) 3.5/5 – Character and dialogue are not exactly a priority, but you pick up the essentials as the script hurries you back and forth between plot strands.
Donald Clarke, Irish Times 3/5 – Cast in impressive depth – Theo James and Sam Worthington lead the heist – Fuze just about sustains interest over that often too-busy closing section. Mackenzie knows how to shoot a car chase and a gun fight.
John Nugent, Empire Magazine 3/5 – It’s thinner than the paper it’s written on, and full of questionable choices — but in a switch-your-brain-off kind of way, this will adequately activate your heist glands. Light the fuze!
Wendy Ide, Observer (UK) – Notwithstanding a couple of silly moments, this is an enjoyable if pulpy watch.
Mark Kermode, Kermode and Mayo's Take (YouTube) – It's lively, watchable fare.
Danny Leigh, Financial Times 3/5 – Much about what ensues is cheerfully hokey. …But there is also a real joie de vivre to how Mackenzie and writer Ben Hopkins contrive twist after twist, making actors and genres collide as if playing with mismatched action figures.
Kevin Maher, The Times (UK) 3/5 – The twists are many and some predictable, but the mood here is mostly, and unapologetically, guilty-pleasure hokum.
Hannah Strong, Little White Lies 3/5 – The resulting film is an uneven one – occasional flashes of intrigue are hampered by Fuze’s strange structure and uncertainty about how funny it wants to be.
Gayle Sequeira, Sight & Sound – An unexploded World War II-era bomb is unearthed early on in the twisty, propulsive Fuze; what gradually becomes apparent is that the men in its radius possess the same hair-trigger volatility.
Linda Marric, HeyUGuys 3/5 – You'll enjoy it while it's on, and Taylor-Johnson, Theo James et al are worth watching throughout. You just might not find yourself thinking about it much once it’s over.
Thelma Adams, AARP Movies for Grownups 4/5 – Fuze may not be on the Oscar track, but it’s an enjoyable, ticking-clock caper about karma, explosives, friendship and betrayal.
Jason Bailey, RogerEbert.com – It’s the kind of lickety-split, old-school programmer Steven Soderbergh and very few others are bothering to make anymore, and if it were content to simply be that, it would land cleanly.
Drew Taylor, TheWrap – …Mackenzie maintains enough depth and earthy characterization that even when the twists start piling on, the texture of the movie never fades away.
Benjamin Lee, Guardian 2/5 – … it’s all rather pedestrian, with a plodding TV score and a dearth of energy, a killer for a film about both a ticking bomb and a daring heist.
Peter Debruge, Variety – If it weren’t for the film’s cast,…“Fuze” might have been a complete dud. But “Hell or High Water” helmer Mackenzie treats the assignment like he’s the one saving lives, eschewing anything that might count as fun along the way.
Richard Lawson, The Hollywood Reporter – The film prizes style, but has no higher ambition than to entertain, with an economy of means and no fussy pretension.
Christian Zilko, IndieWire B- – “Fuze” might not be exceptional enough to break out your finest celebratory shot glasses, but you’re still unlikely to find another film that makes the field of urban construction look so exciting.
SYNOPSIS:
Central London is thrown into panic by the discovery of an unexploded WW2 bomb on a construction site. Amidst the chaos of a widespread evacuation, a gang of criminals begins an audacious heist.
CAST:
- Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Major Will Tranter
- Theo James as Karalis
- Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Chief Superintendent Zuzana
- Sam Worthington as X
- Elham Ehsas as Rahim
- Honor Swinton Byrne as Clareese
- Saffron Hocking as Military Sergeant Dootsie Keane
DIRECTED BY: David Mackenzie
SCREENPLAY BY: Ben Hopkins
PRODUCED BY: Sébastien Raybaud, Callum Grant, David Mackenzie, Gillian Berrie
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Alexander O'Neal, Alastair Burlingham, Gary Raskin, Charlie Dombek, Pieter Engels
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Giles Nuttgens
PRODUCTION DESIGNER: Amanda McArthur
EDITED BY: Matt Mayer
COSTUME DESIGNER: Nigel Egerton
MUSIC BY: Tony Doogan
RUNTIME: 98 Minutes
RELEASE DATE: April 24, 2026
by chanma50