21 Bridges

The problem with 21 Bridges is that it wants to take a stance, but seems entirely unsure what that stance should be.

Wrap those performances in a few half-decent plot points... and the film offers enough depth to justify the set-pieces and narrative twists and turns.

A very solid cast, but the characters are drawn with very broad strokes...it's a nuts-and-bolts B-movie thriller set-up that is executed efficiently.

There are topical moments here as the film toys with public perceptions of US police brutality. And Boseman proves, yet again, to be an easy leading man whose default setting is somewhere between smouldering interiority and outright charm.

There's a pulpy, comic-book noir to this highly enjoyable thriller, whose rules and parameters are clear.

Everything about 21 Bridges...is pure counterfeit.

Predictable, yet some times extremely entertaining and fun. Boseman creates a cool stereotypical cop hero in a movie that doesn't add much to the genre, but at least does not subtracts from it. [Full review in Spanish]

It is incredibly intense. As a movie-going experience it is so much fun... [but] the narrative twist - the audience is in on it before the characters.

Despite a boilerplate script, 21 Bridges is a solid B-thriller that makes strong use of its leading man and gritty action sequences.

There are far more than 21 reasons not to see this dreadful crime drama.