Memorable, crazy movie

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Blistering performances.

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is one of the best bicycle couriers in Manhattan, but when he is tasked with delivering a seemingly harmless envelope this ends up having far reaching repercussions for Wilee when corrupt cop Bobby Monday (Michael Shannon) becomes hell-bent on getting his hands on what is inside this envelope and begins pursuing Wilee all across New York...As a screenwriter David Koepp is fairly accomplished - he has penned screenplays to a lot of good films such as Panic Room, Spider-man, Mission Impossible, Jurassic Park and Carlito's Way. In this respect, Premium Rush does still work (even if it's not as good as some of the better films that Koepp has been responsible for when he merely served as a screenwriter).Perhaps part of the problem with this film with Koepp as far as being a director is his rather limited and repetitive approach to the way everything is presented; the quick editing and Wilee's ability to assess the safest route through NYC's traffic at the blink of an eye are astonishing to look at but in the long run look a bit gimmicky and over-the-top and not to mention implausible and totally ridiculous. Although Koepp keeps his foot on the gas for the most part, the first 20 minutes or so of this picture are quite dull - Wilee has an awkward relationship with his girlfriend and some other guy is trying to muscle in and steal Wilee's girlfriend away from him - really? Who the hell cares? Thankfully, this uninteresting love triangle only proved to be a minor irritant as it only served as a problem in the early stages of the film - Koepp has it banded around here and there in the latter stages of the film, but due to the frantic pace later in the film it does serve as much of a problem later in the film.As a storyteller, Koepp is quite good and in all honesty Premium Rush isn't a bad story once you get down to the nitty gritty and on the surface it does have some heart to it. Having said that though, at its core it is about a mother trafficking her son illegally from the China to the USA and although in one way it's heart-warming on the other hand it's also illegal which makes it a morally queasy and controversial foundation upon which to set one's story.Having said that if you just go with the flow with this one and take it for what it is then it is reasonably entertaining (despite some ridiculous contrivances at the end such as Bob Monday agreeing to let Wilee have his bike back before he's confirmed that he actually has the ticket which effectively leads to his inevitable escape). It's a good film as long as you don't think about it too much...

I hadn't heard of this film when I saw it at the cinema. A film about bicycle couriers? Well… I like Joseph Gordon-Levitt. I really like Michael Shannon. I often like ordinary-guy-caught- up-in-crime-conspiracy films. So what the hell - popped in… … and I'm very glad that I did! What a cracking little film. Gordon-Levitt is cocky but liable; Dania Ramirez is a female supporting character with guts (hurrah!); Wolé Parks and Aasif Mandvi provide comic support… and Michael Shannon does some wonderfully fun scenery-chewing (reminding me of Ray Liotta)… Sure there are some cheesy moments in the script, and a silly "YEAH, NEW YORK CITY" camaraderie ending, but all in all, I liked it. Verdict: The probably the best film about bicycle couriers you'll see in a while!yetanotherfilmreviewblog.tumblr.com

This was quit interesting, the plot in it self could seem a little thin, but it actually works out very well. I like the comic like scenes, where time slows down and Wilee (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) sees the options in traffic he has and what will happen or more go wrong if he picks the wrong one :)This is not like other chase movies, usually chases happens in cars or on foot or motorcycles, but this one is mainly on bike, having been a bike messenger myself it looks very familiar :)The film was suspenseful, interesting, fun, thrilling, serious, well it was all-in-all very entertaining for my sake.

This is a prime example of an action movie made by people who truly know the craft. The film is for the most part lightning-quick and visually pleasing, the characters aren't incredibly deep, but acted well with all the necessary tropes, and amidst it all, there's something at stake.The filmmakers don't try to sugarcoat anything with respect to character development; Joseph Gordon-Levitt's "Wiley" is introduced as a likable guy doing a job because he loves it and isn't seeing eye to eye with his girlfriend, but thankfully there's no melodrama.Other than that, we're given a villain who is easy to dislike with his pathetic, slimy personality. These components, combined with the value of the envelope Wiley must deliver actually make the movie fairly intense at times, though it's always at least fun. There's a definite sense of humour as well.Only complaint is that there are moments where the pacing kind of drags relative to the rest of the film when the bikes aren't involved. Easily overlooked.