Mayday is the latest from the writer/director team of Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, who previously brought us the surprise hits Game Night and Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. Set in 1987 against the backdrop of the Cold War, it follows Troy Kelly (played by Ryan Reynolds), a US Navy pilot who crash-lands in Soviet Russia after a black-op mission goes awry. When Nikolai Ustinov (played by Kenneth Branagh), an ex-KGB agent obsessed with American culture (particularly the movie Top Gun) who has retreated to the woods, rescues him, the two must reluctantly join forces to get Kelly home. It’s a relatively simple premise that could set up a terrific buddy comedy. Unfortunately, the end result misses its target and becomes a generic, paint-by-numbers comedy that never rises to the level of the filmmakers’ previous efforts.

As essentially a buddy comedy, Mayday is anchored by the performances and chemistry of your two leads. Reynolds (Deadpool, The Hitman’s Bodyguard) is exactly what one might expect; charming and handsome as ever, albeit a bit grating. If you’re a fan of constant Deadpool-esque quipping, then you’re going to love him here. If, on the other hand, you find the entire schtick entirely tired and played out, then I’ve got some very bad news for you.

Branagh (Tenet, Death on the Nile), on the other hand, does his best to elevate the otherwise lacklustre material. Never one to shy away from an opportunity to put on a Russian accent, his portrayal of Ustinov is layered, and positively subdued next to Reynolds’ constant running commentary. But when he’s asked to show off his not-inconsiderable thespian skills – be they with fight choreography or comedic timing – he rises to the occasion. He acts as the perfect foil to Reynolds and keeps the film’s momentum moving.

It’s somewhat surprising, though, that Goldstein and Daley’s film is so unlike their previous successful efforts. It really feels like they’re just playing with standard ’80s buddy-comedy tropes, but set against the backdrop of the Cold War. It’s also unfortunate that it feels so generic for most of the runtime, because when it actually gets to the Cold War espionage stuff, it’s actually pretty fun, entertaining, and dare I say, thrilling. The final chase sequence, which has hints of the tank-chase set-piece from GoldenEye, is genuinely exciting, and the climactic plane battle has moments that feel like something out of Mission: Impossible. The film even occasionally tries some interesting political conversations, but Reynolds’ constant quipping interrupts them before they can go anywhere interesting. It’s clear that Goldstein and Daley understand how to play with and subvert Hollywood tropes, but here they seem completely uninterested in doing so.

That’s not to say the film is all bad. There are some genuine chuckles to be had, and there’s no denying that, annoying quips aside, Reynolds and Branagh have decent chemistry. There’s even an all-too-brief appearance from Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, The Apprentice) as Branagh’s estranged daughter. Barry Peterson does some really interesting things with his cinematography at times (though the obsession with flying through CGI windows gets a little tired after the fifth time), and the fight sequences are pretty fun; nothing John Wick-level, but some interesting choreography combined with the aforementioned camera work. In many ways, it feels perfectly at home with the types of movies that would have been contemporary to the films’ 1987 setting, and that Ustinov himself might be obsessed with.

In fact, that’s very much the takeaway here: Mayday is the perfect Friday night “pizza movie” (a term I’m lovingly stealing from director Alex Ross Perry). It’s the kind of movie that your parents might have rented from Blockbuster for a Friday night watch after a long and tiring week; accompanied by a large pepperoni pizza, the whole family would have had a perfectly decent evening. But it’s not a movie that will withstand the test of time, and it certainly isn’t Top Gun. Most of all, I just wish it were funnier.

Mayday begins streaming September 4 on Apple TV.