First Take: Gringo- run for the border

SYNOPSIS:

GRINGO, a dark comedy mixed with white-knuckle action and dramatic intrigue, explores the battle of survival for businessman Harold Soyinka (David Oyelowo) when he finds himself crossing the line from law-abiding citizen to wanted criminal.

This is the first Amazon produced film that my beloved local cinema have screened, and while the trailers did have a lot of alluring qualities (a unique plot, good humour and that sort of stuff), nothing could prepare me for the disappointment that followed. What we got was a very long 1 hour 50 minute film that varied in quality.

Nash Edgerton directs this film very weirdly, it’s well paced at points (most notably during any of the stunt sequences, he has prior experience in that field), but on the other hand, the sequences that don’t feature action are long and too drawn out for their own good- at least 20 minutes of this film could have been cut to make it easier to watch. The script from Anthony Tambakis and Matthew Stone doesn’t help matters either, as it didn’t pass the 6 laugh test at any point. It is shot well though, with Eduard Gau providing some good cinematography, and Christophe Beck provides a decent enough score.

What shocked me about this film was the performances. Because of the poor direction, I simply couldn’t engage with the film’s leads in the form of David Oyelowo, Joel Edgerton and Charlize Theron- they are all big Hollywood talents who put in some great work within the industry, but how did they end up in this? Seriously, how did they land this film? The presence of Thandie Newton and Amanda Seyfried as well as the fantastic Sharlto Copley in supporting roles did make it more bearable, but still, after seeing this in an empty screen 2, I can’t understand how and why this film actually made it to cinemas.

THE VERDICT

Devoid of any decent humour, Gringo had promise based on its trailers, but unfortunately its execution left a lot to be desired- and it’s a shame, this film had potential, but it would have been much better as a streaming only title. It’s easily forgettable, and boy is it predictable.

RATING: 2.5/5