Premium Rush -
(August 24th, 2012): PG-13
Distributor: Columbia
Pictures (Division of Sony Pictures)
Opening Weekend Box Office:
#8 with $6,030,164
Domestic Box Office
Gross to-date: $16,732,000
Gross Revenue: $18,032,000
Production Budget:
$35 million
Director: David Koepp
As strange a concept as the core
premise of Premium Rush may seem, the
truth is that this unconventional action thriller represented a significant
passion project for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who was eager for a physical role
after filming his strong dramatic turn in last September’s 50/50. There was certainly a
considerable amount of buzz concerning a film centered on bike messengers,
whether that involved the multiple release delays or the fact that
Gordon-Levitt was injured while doing his own stunts for a particularly
harrowing cycling scene…needless to say, curiosity and skepticism were both
understandably high. For me, one of the
biggest buzz builders for Premium Rush
was the fact that Michael Shannon was cast as the film’s villain; the actor may
be popular for his work on HBO’s Boardwalk
Empire, but he still remains relatively unknown to mass audiences, so this
summer release represented some much-needed exposure before he would take on
the beefy role of General Zod in next summer’s Man of Steel. Add-in the
casting of a ridiculously hot leading lady like Dania Ramirez (last seen in April’s
American Reunion), and I was able to
overlook the normal red flags that accompany a late August release. Now, there are few actors more popular right
now than Joseph Gordon-Levitt, so even though Premium Rush was focusing on an extremely limited subject material
that would truly resonate with only a limited niche market, maybe the
combination of the two would be just offbeat enough to spell a surprise success
for Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Set in the harrowing world
inhabited by fearless New York City bike messengers, Premium Rush focuses on Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), one of the
city’s best messengers, who relishes his job and enjoys taking significant
risks, which includes working alongside with his ex-girlfriend, Vanessa (Dania
Ramirez). On the request of Vanessa’s
roommate, Nima (Jamie Chung), Wilee accepts a seemingly routine pick-up and
delivery assignment, but things quickly get out of hand when a thug identifying
himself as Bobby Monday (Michael Shannon) intercepts the young courier and
threatens him for the package.
Absolutely resolute not to surrender the package he has been tasked to
deliver; Wilee narrowly escapes Monday and resolves to report the incident to
the police, only to discover to his horror that Monday is actually an NYPD
detective. It is revealed that Monday is
a gambling addict who has gotten himself in deep with Chinese loan sharks, and
the contents of the package that Wilee is carrying are valued at $50,000. Though Wilee is initially content not to get
involved in such a complicated manner, he soon realizes that the package he is
carrying is a major component in a smuggling ring that holds the key to the
welfare of Nima’s young son, so the edgy cyclist resolves to use all his skills
in order to do the right thing.
Now, while this newest August entry
is anything but an edge-of-your-seat thriller, it is obvious that everyone
behind Premium Rush tried their
hardest to make this project entertaining; or, as entertaining as a film
focusing on bike messengers can be. To their
credit, the filmmakers employed numerous creative tactics in order to add some
depth to a film focused on a limited sub-culture, but even though these
strategies were novel and mildly entertaining, the inherent surprise wore thin
very, very quickly. Non-diegetic
graphics were used extensively to try and illustrate both the routes and
decision-making strategies that bike messengers employ, and the numerous
intricacies detailed are interesting, but in the hands of anyone else, audience
attention likely couldn’t have been maintained.
As always, Joseph Gordon Levitt is effortlessly entertaining, but save
for one masterfully executed running joke within the narrative, I still feel
that the writers underused the actor’s talent and sacrificed character
development in favor of a few small stunts.
In the end, there are parts of Premium
Rush that are undeniably amusing, but was that enough to justify a
feature-length film?...not a chance.
Now, if the writer’s underuse of
Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s talent was the biggest misstep of Premium Rush, then, as one of the final entries of the 2012 Summer
Movie Season, this movie could have still delivered some quality entertainment;
but trust me, in terms of bad writing, what I have identified thus far is
simply the tip of the iceberg. In all
but a single scene, Michael Shannon’s “villain” is embarrassing inept and
non-threatening, and given the talent I know that the actor possesses, the
fault has to lie with writers being unsure as to what direction they should
have taken the character…goofy and serious rarely mesh effectively. And then there is Dania Ramirez, whose
character is so one-note and hyper-sexualized that her presence is almost
nothing more than a pathetic attempt to try and keep male moviegoers
interested. Finally, in terms of the
narrative itself, even forgiving the overly-complicated human-trafficking angle,
the writers clearly deferred to one too many cinematic clichés; I have no doubt
that almost everyone saw the dirty cop “reveal” coming a mile away. While there were hopes that the unusual
formula of Premium Rush would charm
moviegoers, it has become increasingly clear that this largely boring project
was relegated to late August so that executives could get it off their shelves
and make room for better releases in the coming months.
To be fair, in terms of overall box
office revenue, the opening weekend of Premium
Rush was one of the worst that cinemas have seen in years, but that
sobering fact wasn’t enough to make an 8th place opening
forgivable. Admittedly, Sony’s entry did
outperform other new releases Hit and Run
and The Apparition, but again, that
isn’t an accomplishment exactly worthy of accolade. With a near-nonexistent foreign presence and
a pitiful domestic draw, it is kind of sad that a feature with such a normally
bankable actor will have to struggle to recover half of a $35 million production
budget after nearly three weeks out of the gate. And, surprising as it may be, September has a
ridiculously stacked release schedule, which will only lead into the critical
contenders that saturate the Fall Movie Season, so trust me when I say that Premium Rush’s best days are long
gone. In this rare misstep, Joseph
Gordon-Levitt deserved a far better script, and audience members deserved a far
better movie.
Overall Recommendation: Low
