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Joseph Gordon-Levitt does not have the best of days in David Koepp’s Premium Rush. We do, though. It's a solid, forward-thinking action flick that tries a bit too hard to be more than what it is: a high octane B-movie without need for brakes. With Koepp (writer of hits like Mission Impossible, Spider-Man and Jurassic Park) at its helm, expectations for genius might be at an all-time high. Lower those, folks. The film is better appreciated as a tight single-minded action flick like Speed or Die Hard or Nick of Time instead of some late-in-the-year blockbuster.
Speed demon Wilee (Gordon-Levitt) is an ex-law student turned bike messenger. His lightweight bike has been modified (one gear, no brakes) and his maneuvering through the streets of New York has earned him the title of fastest bike messenger in all of New York City. On-again, off-again girlfriend and fellow bike messenger Vanessa, (Dania Ramiez) doesn’t understand his willingness to risk life and limb for his deliveries but there’s no stopping him.
Like every good B-movie, it’s the last job that does him in. And at the end of his shift, the final assignment - pick up a small envelope and deliver it across town in just under 90 minutes – brings him closer to the edge than he’d ever expect. It won’t be easy, though. Especially when he picks up the wrong envelope at the wrong time and a local detective, an over-the-top psycho named Bobby Monday (Michael Shannon), steals every scene away from you.
We are already used to Koepp as the writer. Throughout Premium Rush, the spirited dialogue remains wiry and piston-like and, as is the usual, better performed with a snap to the mouth and little thought behind it. Koepp (Secret Window) as the director is a bit more economical this time around with zippy shots of bikes journeying where cars fear to tread. Unlike the pacing of his earlier films Stir of Echoes or The Trigger Effect, Koepp keeps the momentum fresh with quick looks at the planned route and suddenly – BOOM - we’re off for a day at the (bike) races.
The on-screen action – which also features a rival bike messenger named Manny (Wole Parks) and a pissed-off bicycle cop (Christopher Place) - is slick but it must be stressed that the film gets most of its satisfaction from the sheer value of its own adrenaline. The gimmick of riding along inside the bike messenger’s brain is a rocket-like thrill ride but it doesn’t mask the very essence of the film as anything but a B-movie. Its limitations become clear when Koepp tries to stretch the film with suspicious and sweaty character information concerning a roommate, Nima (Jamie Chung) and a rationale for a serious bad guy (Shannon) with serious debts.
Premium Rush is lean and mean. Ignore what the genre-hopping Koepp wants it to be and appreciate it for what it is: simple fun with the need for speed.
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some violence, intense action sequences and language.
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