In the early days of the Hollywood studios, there was a star system in place, where certain actors were turned into stars. It only made sense to the studios that if you managed to create two stars, putting them in a project together in a package would only increase the return at the box office.

Although the star system is long gone, there’s something about this latest Netflix original that is reminiscent of those starry days of old, particularly as it features three of the biggest stars on the planet.

Hot on the trail of a wanted criminal is Special Agent John Hartley (Dwayne Johnson). He’s one of the agencies top profilers, which has led him to a museum in Rome, where he believes Nolan Booth (Ryan Reynolds), the world’s second greatest art thief, is about to steal a rare artefact, an egg once owned by Cleopatra.

Sure enough, Booth is there, and he’s already got his hands on it. The thing is, the egg is part of a set of three, and although valuable on its own, having the full set fetches an obscene amount of money to the right buyer.

Of course jewels of this calibre are always going to attract attention, like from the world’s greatest thief say, known as the Bishop (Gal Gadot), who already has a buyer lined up for all three.

When Hartley catches up with Booth, he tells him he’s not interested in the eggs, only catching the Bishop. And so a partnership is planned, where both parties can get what they want. The Bishop however has other plans...

Just as the star system relied on chemistry by throwing its newly created stars together, so do films today with big stars attached. And when you have the biggest box office draw in your cast in the bulky shape of Johnson, it can understandably be a little daunting for anyone else. Except for Reynolds of course. Reynolds is the wise-crack king, as he has already demonstrated so perfectly in his Deadpool guise. If ever Johnson had the perfect foil, it’s Reynolds. So much so that their double act is a work of art in itself; there’s a genuine chemistry, as they bounce off of one another, and it’s the type of on-screen relationship that could work for further features, similar to the Bob Hope and Bing Crosby road films.

And if that wasn’t enough you also have Wonder Woman herself; Gadot excels as a slightly evil character, and you just know she’s letting her hair down and having a ball. Let’s face it, who wouldn’t in the company of Johnson and Reynolds?

But it’s not just the cast that feels like it’s paying homage to the classic star system; director Rawson Marshall Thurber’s film has a retro quality, that of an old skool heist film, that’s also a buddy flick, with a feint whiff of Raiders of the Lost Ark. It sounds a mess, but he makes it work.

It’s highly energetic and entertaining, that never really takes itself that seriously, making for what amounts to the perfect Saturday night popcorn film.