An uncharacteristic box office flop from the usually dependable Matt Damon is currently riding high in Netflix's top ten.

The Great Wall was mainly met with derision when first released in 2017 - and currently attracts a lowly 5.9 on IMDb and an appalling 35 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite its sizeable $150 million (£119m) budget, Deadline reported the film's lacklustre performance cost Legendary and Universal a whopping $75 million (£59.7m).

Yet despite this negativity, the monster of mediocrity is enjoying a new lease of life perched at number six in the streaming giant's charts.

'What's it about?'

While it may not be everyone's cup of tea, there's no doubt The Great Wall is visually stunning. This action-fantasy film directed by Zhang Yimou is set against the backdrop of ancient China. The story follows William Garin (Matt Damon), a European mercenary who finds himself in search of the powerful 'black powder' - gunpowder. Alongside his companion, Tovar (Pedro Pascal), William stumbles upon the Great Wall of China, a massive structure built to defend against monstrous creatures known as the Tao Tei.

Initially taken prisoner by the secretive army stationed at the Wall, William soon earns their trust and joins forces with them to combat the relentless enemy. As waves of these fearsome creatures attack the Wall, William and his newfound allies must use their skills and ingenuity to fend off the threat and protect China and the world from annihilation.

Throughout the film, William transforms from a self-serving mercenary to a selfless hero as he forms bonds with his fellow warriors and learns the true meaning of courage and sacrifice.

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'Sounds good - so why the backlash?'

The film came under fire upon its initial release amid accusations of 'whitewashing' with Damon in the main role. Some believed such a role should have gone to someone of Chinese descent. But the actor insisted the role 'was always intended to be European.'

Following the film's trailer, which you can watch above, further fuel was added to the ire after Hustlers star Constance Wu tweeted 'We have to stop perpetuating the racist myth that a only (sic) white man can save the world'.

But Damon told a Beijing press junket: "Once people see that it's a monster movie and it's a historical fantasy and I didn't take a role away from a Chinese actor ... it wasn't altered because of me in any way".

Regardless of any 'whitewashing' accusations, The Great Wall has largely been derided as it simply isn't a very good movie, with Rolling Stone's Peter Travers noting: "What a bummer that all Chinese master Zhang Yimou and Hollywood star Matt Damon come up with is a B-level creature feature with delusions of grandeur".

A critic from Vox.com, Alissa Wilkinson, penned a scathing review saying: "It is big. It is eye-popping. It is about China. And it is definitely about a legend. It also doesn't have a single thought in its noggin, but it does have armies of toothy monsters."

Some viewers also took to X (formerly Twitter) to pour scorn on The Great Wall, with one tweeting: "Chinese propaganda movie starring Matt Damon now showing on Netflix. It's good for a laugh."

'Was better than I was expecting'

However, it isn't all doom and gloom where The Great Wall is concerned, with some viewers being rather more complimentary:

@StephenBri posted: "I decided to finally check out the movie The Great Wall. I had no idea THAT is what it was about. Was better than I was expecting."

@Lovelyxo: "The Great Wall on Netflix is good".

@hard8_times: "If you've never seen The Great Wall, check it out on Netflix".

@MarkWalter: "It is much better than many people give it credit for".

And while overall the film was dumped on by critics as a whole, some were moved sufficiently enough to praise the fighting scenes.

Brian Lowry of CNN wrote: "A well-paced action movie that doesn't waste much time on preliminaries or explanations before plunging headlong into a prolonged, elaborately orchestrated fight against a horde of ghastly creatures."

David Edelstein from Vulture described The Great Wall as 'a hoot-and-a-half' and Bilge Ebiri from The Village Voice went so far as to call the movie 'absolutely dazzling.'