Premium Rush

¨I like to ride. Fixed gear. No brakes. Can't stop. Don't want to, either.¨ I'm not a big fan of director, David Koepp's work (Ghost Town, Secret Window), but I decided to give Premium Rush a chance considering Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Michael Shannon were staring in this film. Gordon-Levitt has had a great year with some interesting roles in The Dark Knight Rises and Looper, but here he doesn't have a great script to work with. Michael Shannon on the other hand gave one of the best performances of 2011 in Take Shelter, a movie I really loved; but here I was really disappointed with his work. I didn't like the way he portrayed his character as a corrupt cop one bit. The film has a lot of action and interesting bike scenes, but it never feels like it is taking itself too seriously. I don't mind when film do this, but it wasn't very funny either so it didn't work in any level for me. I really was hoping Premium Rush would be a better movie, but Koepp has disappointed me once again. I give this film a 5 out of 10 because I thought some of the bicycle scenes were pretty exciting and Levitt still manages to be likable. If you haven't seen his other films this year then go see them instead of this one. I really can't recommend this film to anyone. I thought it was just another forgettable light action flick, which is too bad because the trailer did make it look interesting. Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) works as a bike messenger in the dangerous streets of Manhattan. He has a sort of no fear mentality and rides his bike without breaks, taking his job seriously. He will do what it takes to deliver his packages on time, even if it means he has to put his life (or others) in danger. What begins like an ordinary day for Wilee when he's asked to deliver a simple envelope ends up being a nightmare for him. A corrupt police detective named Bobby (Michael Shannon) wants to intercept the envelope before Wilee can make the delivery and thus follows him across the city. Wilee realizes that he's not holding an ordinary package and decides to return it to the sender before he gets into more trouble. The sender happens to be Nima (Jamie Chung), Vanessa's (Dania Ramirez) roommate, and Vanessa happens to be Wilee's girlfriend. When Nima tells him how important it is that the envelope be delivered on time Wilee realizes he has to help her, but the package has already been picked up by another bike messenger, Manny (Wole Parks). Thus the chase begins between Manny, Wilee, and Bobby across the heavily transited streets of NY. The film has some fun action scenes as we see these experienced cyclists chasing each other across the city at high speeds, but the characters are really poorly developed and everything seems to be taken so lightly. The movie has some crazy editing going on as well as Wilee deliberates as to which direction he should take and we see the possible outcomes before he actually decides. Premium Rush is also narrated in non-linear fashion as we go back and forth in time to explain certain events. I'm not a big fan of chase scenes, and this film is one gigantic chase scene so that may be one of the reasons why I didn't enjoy this movie as much. Cyclists might enjoy this film, but I found the script a bit cheesy and everything really over the top (like Michael Shannon's performance). I couldn't recommend this film. http://estebueno10.blogspot.com

It pains me to give this 1 out of 10 instead of 0 out of 10. The movie's premise was absolutely ridiculous. The central premise to this movie is that a girl pays the Chinese mafia to have her son smuggled from China to the US. However in order to complete that transaction she has to take the receipt from the guy that she paid and bring it to another woman across town (apparently the guy who collected the cash can't call the woman). If you buy into that notion, you're also asked to believe that she would have a bike messenger deliver the scrap of paper instead of doing it herself. If you thought that was good then ask yourself what could go wrong... well of course there's a dirty cop that wants to intercept the receipt. You're also asked to believe that the main character who has finished law school would rather deliver packages via bike than take the bar because the thought of being in an office is that detestable to him. He asserts that having a brake on his bike is more dangerous than not. This point is made in several instances where he proclaims the dangers of having a brake. There is even a point later in the movie where his love interest takes a spill and makes the conclusion that the accident was a direct result of having a brake which of course leads her to remove remove her brake as well.

The movie is set around bicycle messenger/courier who chases and is chased around New York City due to an envelope containing a wanted item by people with different intentions. The events - not shown in chronological order, through various flash-forward and flash-back cuts - are intense, but not too realistic: New York is full of policemen, on foot/in cars/on bikes, and it is not likely to race and speed negligently for miles through dozens of blocks, causing accidents or incidents... Chases are, however, gripping to follow, and thanks to great performances by Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Wilee and Michael Shannon as Bobby Monday, the movie goes beyond trivial cat and mouse play (only pity that Monday did not have the same vehicle than Wilee). Female performers, on the other hand, are not very catchy and romantic/sympathetic background is rather perfunctory. The movie is definitely for you if you like fast races and thrill within a big city and/or you know NY well (joy of recognition).

I've been looking forward to Premium Rush for a while, so it was a little disheartening to see so many negative comments about the film. That was before I looked at RT and saw the nearly 80% fresh. I am inclined to agree. While it does have some holes in it, Rush is a fun film filled with many edge of your seat moments. Seeing our biker hero Wilee zip in and out of traffic in NYC is a thrill ride that rarely lets up. The plot is simplistic enough to carry the film. Wilee is a bike courier in New York who lives his life on the edge. His "fixie" modified bike, with no gears or breaks, guides him at high speeds as he almost constantly avoids injury and even death. On this particular day, Wilee gets an envelope to deliver that turns out to be quite valuable, enough for a corrupt NYC Detective to chase him throughout the city trying to get it. But this is all just set up for some of the best high speed action on screen in a while. I suppose a lot has to be owed to the unique take on cycling in the city. It creates for some interesting and hairy situations, as well as some slick effects work, that aids in the adrenaline rush, which almost never seems to let up. Certainly there are some slow down moments for exposition, but they are few as the main focus here is the dangerous riding for our couriers. The actors aid in delivering entertaining performances, including Joseph Gordon Levitt as Wilee, who brings the kind of energy and talent that you'd expect from the actor. However, Michael Shannon is the true star here as the main antagonist, who does come off as both threatening and slimy. He seems to have fun in the role, and that translates to a good time every time he's on screen. The rest of the cast is decent, if unexceptional. This includes Dania Ramirez of Heroes fame who doesn't seem to have much to go on besides the girlfriend role. What you will most certainly see this for is the action in the film, and it is definitely pretty crazy. I'd be interested in seeing a behind the scenes of the film, because there is a near constant edge of your seat feeling to what is taking place on screen. The best thing about it is that it doesn't feel unnatural. Sure, it's obviously not entirely realistic, but it never feels fake either. In my book, this kind of unique action and adventure in a film, along with a breathless pace, makes the film a worthwhile end of summer catch.

Though rather generic, Premium Rush provides an extraordinarily entertaining ride. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, though not having to much to do other then ride his bicycle still is a truly likable hero and Michael Shannon, who's screen time seems a bit out of proportion to me makes for an entertaining semi-psychopath. All this is skillfully delivered by director David Koepp who apparently knows how to write a screenplay too, finding breakneck pacing for the movie while twisting the plot with some timeshifts really makes the ride premium to some degree. If you are looking for some quality entertainment, look no further. 7/10

I have just watched 'Premium Rush' and I have to say I'm very impressed with it. This isn't your huge blockbuster but it is something different and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I liked the plot and it was very clever how we saw flashbacks of various things, twists and turns, going in back in time and seeing a different perspective. This really linked the film together nicely. The action is just thrilling and something different. The chases are fast paced and frantic, it is absolute chaos on the roads. There is some great stunts, its far fetched but its crazily fast. Definitely a film for all the adrenaline junkies out there. One part of the film that I really liked was, when Wilee was in danger of potentially crashing the bicycle, we see how his mind works. We see 3 potential routes he can take to avoid injury so he can decide the best way to go. Some of these parts are cleverly thought out and also quite funny in parts. The acting was up to scratch, there was a few characters who added something different. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Dania Ramirez played a very likable pair. Overall this is a good action thriller type film, suspense builds and the movie is just fast paced. I really enjoyed it, much better than expected. Would recommend it to anyone and I would certainly watch it again. 85 minutes of carnage. 9/10.

We found the script to be poorly written, as though borrowed from many other bad movies. The characters themselves seem to be borrowed. The main character is the typical rebel-daredevil-with-a-death-wish. You have a stereotypical smack-talking rival and a host of other poorly thought out characters. The bad cop is the most unbelievable character, though I grant the actor had nothing to work with in terms of script. The plot was painfully predictable. My son and I sat through this, sharing apologetic glances for having brought one another to this. We wished we had saved our money and time, and I suggest you don't waste yours.

I am going to go out on a limb and bet you have never heard of the screenwriter David Koep. David who? How about the David that wrote the scripts for Jurassic Park, Mission Impossible, War of the Worlds, and Spider Man? Yeah, that is a pretty impressive resume to say the least. And as an aspiring screenwriter I was fairly excited for his newest release, Premium Rush. I went into the theater knowing only that Koep was the director and writer and that it starred Joseph Gordon- Levitt. That is usually all the information I need; (I try to avoid trailers so I don't falsely prejudge the film. It's the cinematic equivalent of judging a book by its cover.) But, sadly, this is an instance where I wish I had more background because, to be frank, the world of underground bicycle mail- delivering is lame no matter who is trying to portray it. Koep and Gordon-Levitt are obviously talented; there is no denying that. But they fit into this film like a square peg in a round hole. The guy who wrote Mission Impossible is directing a movie about mail- carriers on bicycles and it stars that one dude from The Dark Knight Rises? There is no sugar coating it- this movie was destined for failure. Koep tries so hard to fill holes in the plot with fast paced bicycle riding from the get go that midway through the film I was dreading a climax that was sure to come off as painfully contrived. Couple that with incredibly generic dialogue by an almost unheard-of cast of D-list supporting actors and there was really no stopping this train wreck. There is nothing to take here except maybe the misguided performance of Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road and Take Shelter). He left me wondering if I was supposed to be laughing at how blatantly confusing his bad guy character was or concerned that he had forgotten how to act. His work would have been spectacular if this film was a black comedy. He's comically sinister, goofy, and fairly entertaining but incredibly out of place in this run-of-the- mill action flick. Andrun-of-the-mill is almost a praise worthy term; make no mistake about it- aside from Shannon's confusing character there is nothing memorable to take away from Premium Rush. Overall grade- D