Blu-ray Review: Strong Pace, Great Cast Give Speed to Mediocre ‘Premium Rush’

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CHICAGO – I heard from a lot of people during the recent year-end season of top ten lists, critics awards, and Oscar predictions that one of the films I needed to catch up with that was underrated was David Koepp’s “Premium Rush,” recently released on Blu-ray and DVD. The movie has hardcore fans. I don’t quite get the most adamant of those fans. It’s an OK flick, a decent rental with strong pacing, impressive stunts, and a great cast, who elevate a pretty mediocre script.

Rating: 3.0/5.0

Easily one of the best actors of his generation, Joseph Gordon-Levitt adds to his already-impressive 2012 resume (which also included “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Lincoln,” and “Looper”) with the role of a bike messenger who gets the most important package of his fast-paced career. Michael Shannon steals the movie as the guy who tries to get it back while Dania Ramirez more than holds her beautiful own with both of them. The movie flies by like a messenger running a red light but it also feels about as deep most of the time. It’s fun but not overly memorable (other then when Shannon is wonderfully chewing scenery) and the special features are brief, EPK-type stuff about the making of the flick. A solid rental but nothing more.

Premium Rush was released on Blu-ray and DVD on December 21, 2012
Photo credit: Sony

Synopsis:
Dodging speeding cars, crazed cabbies and eight million cranky pedestrians is all in a day’s work for Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the best of New York’s agile and aggressive bicycle messengers. It takes a special breed to ride the fixie - super lightweight, single-gear bikes with no brakes and riders who are equal part skilled cyclists and nutcases who risk becoming a smear on the pavement every time they head into traffic. But a guy who’s used to putting his life on the line is about to get more than even he is used to when his last envelope of the day - a routine “premium rush” run - turns into a life or death chase through the streets of Manhattan. Also starring Michael Shannon, Dania Ramirez and Jamie Chung. For International Only: Dodging speeding cars, crazed cabbies and eight million cranky pedestrians is all in a day’s work for Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the best of New York’s agile and aggressive bicycle messengers. It takes a special breed to ride the fixie bike. Riders who are equal part skilled cyclists and nutcases who risk becoming a smear on the pavement every time they head into traffic. But a guy who puts his life on the line everyday is about to get more than even he is used to when his last envelope of the day - a routine “premium rush” run - turns into a life or death chase through the streets of Manhattan. Also starring Michael Shannon, Dania Ramirez and Jamie Chung.

Special Features:
o The Starting Line
o Behind the Wheels

By BRIAN TALLERICO Content Director HollywoodChicago.com brian@hollywoodchicago.com