Netflix's Exterritorial Was A Hard-Hitting Action Thriller, But There's One Big Change I Would Make

SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Exterritorial. If you’ve yet to watch the action thriller, please turn back and check it out with your Netflix subscription.

Netflix has been on a roll this year when it comes to gripping and hard-hitting action movies. From the surprise hit Ad Vitum at the start of the 2025 movie schedule to the long-in-the-works Havoc starring Tom Hardy, there’s been a lot to love for fans of great action movies. The streaming service just released another addition to that list with Exterritorial, a German thriller about a former soldier losing her son at the American Consulate.

Despite the great setup, stellar fight sequences, and a gripping story that goes to some fairly dark places and doesn’t shy away from mental health issues, there is something I didn’t like all that much about Exterritorial. So, what is the one change I would make? Let’s get into that, but first let me sing this film’s praises…

Exterritorial Has A Gripping Story And Some Of The Best Action I've Seen All Year

I’ve watched a ton of action movies this year (a large portion of which are 2025 Netflix movies), and I can say that Exterritorial has one of the most gripping stories and some of the best action of the pack. Sara, a former German Special Forces soldier dealing with her young son being kidnapped and trying to find him in the American Consulate (where German laws don’t apply), is a superbly written character who is brought to life by Jeanne Goursau’s incredible performance.

I didn’t know who to trust as the movie went on, even Sara, who was still dealing with some heavy post-traumatic stress disorder years after combat in the war in Afghanistan. The evolution of the story, combined with fight sequences and shootouts akin to something in the John Wick franchise, gave twists and turns all the way until the very end.

But The Reveal About Sara's Son's Disappearance Was So Unoriginal

Don’t get me wrong, the film had an okay landing that gave us even more outrageous action sequences, but I was unimpressed with the reason behind Sara’s son being kidnapped by the Americans. Around two-thirds of the way through the movie, it is revealed that Eric Kynch (Dougray Scott), the head of regional security at the consulate, was behind the kidnapping all along and was trying to lure Sara there so that he could kill her as she knew about him betraying his country and giving sensitive information to the Taliban.

I feel like I’ve seen countless movies where the villain’s plan revolves around him or her going to great lengths to kill someone so they don’t talk and get them in trouble. For a movie that started out so strong and teased some heavy psychological thriller elements, the ending just felt unoriginal and flat.

I Wish The Movie Had Instead Taken A More Psychological Approach, Which It Teased Multiple Times

Throughout Exterritorial, it is made very clear that Sara, as seen in the film's trailer, is suffering from some serious PTSD and has a hard time telling the difference between reality and fantasy, which adds another layer to the story. However, that ends up being for nothing, and all those teases (like the one where Sara’s son was removed from all the security footage so that she looks like she’s lost her mind) just end up being pointless.

I honestly think the movie would have been better if it went all-in on the psychological thriller aspect and given us a less-than-cheery conclusion. Yeah, it would have been dark and would leave things on a more down note, but I think it would have given us a totally wild ending that wouldn’t seem completely out of left field thanks to all those early scenes.

Was the Exterritorial ending enough to ruin the movie for me? No, not really. But I did feel like it was what kept this good action flick from being a great and memorable thriller.