 |
| Image Source |
Director: Jon Watts
Year: 2015
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 28 minutes
A pair of young boys who are running away from home finds a vacant cop car in a field. Starting out innocently enough, they explore the car out of curiosity before finding the keys and taking it for a joyride. Unbeknownst to them, the car belongs to a crooked cop who has some incriminating evidence in the trunk and will do anything to get it back.
Jon Watts' "Cop Car" is a rather minimalist thriller starring Kevin Bacon and two young actors, James Freedson-Jackson and Hays Wellford. The film starts with the two boys seemingly running away from home, walking through a field just saying random curse words simply because they are all by themselves, and because they can. They are clearly unprepared for such an event, packing only one Slim Jim and nothing else but their vivid imaginations about their survival capabilities. They do things young boys would do out and about on their little adventure, kicking cans, running through the field, etc. One of the boys, Travis, played by Freedson-Jackson, is obviously the more influential of the two and is a bit of a trouble maker, and the other, Harrison, played by Wellford, is much timider and is very much a follower looking for and craving acceptance. Both kids give solid performances in their respective roles. These two characters feel real and genuine, and the two actors really convey how kids their age would act if given the opportunity of freedom on the road. Much of what they do is actually quite funny, despite where the movie ultimately ends up.
"Cop Car" dances between being a dark comedy and an intense thriller, which revs up the action once the kids steal what appears to be an abandoned cop car. It turns out the car belongs to Kretzer, played by Kevin Bacon, who is the local sheriff and is completely crooked. He left something in the trunk and needs to retrieve it before anyone else finds his car or its contents. Bacon does a stellar job playing a frantic cop who is desperate to prevent anyone else from discovering his crimes. The boys wind up getting themselves into more trouble and more danger than they ever bargained for, and their journey is full of some intense moments, some funny situations, and some exciting scenes that make "Cop Car" an overall enjoyable viewing experience. We were really surprised by this one, and it's fun to watch what director Jon Watts was able to do with a minimal budget, cast, and production design. Everything feels implemented for a purpose, and there's no extra frills or needless additions to bog down the story. Considering there's not a whole lot to it, we remained captivated throughout its short run time.
My Rating: 7/10
BigJ's Rating: 7/10
IMDB's Rating: 6.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 79%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?
No comments:
Post a Comment