Critical

Dealing with themes of nature versus nurture, and learning to shed parental expectations, Critical is a sprawling gangster-flick, stocked with a cabal of pulpy, layered characters. It is daddy issues galore in the seedy underworlds of New York and Atlanta, where two henchmen, a drugged-out stunt man and a pair of FBI agents are destined to clash on a fateful road trip. Jay Tropper is an aspiring crime writer who can’t seem to keep his anger issues in check. That’s all good and well for his day job - muscle for a local crime syndicate - but he doesn’t exactly handle constructive criticism well, and it’s definitely impacting his quest for literary recognition. Tropper takes Dex Freeman under his wing, showing him the ropes of how to get ahead in their ruthless industry. Lucky for Dex, visitation with his jailed father provides a sort of recurring tutoring session - how to be a criminal. Dex will have to digest these lessons fast if he’s going to maintain his cool, manage his secret identity and keep a lid on the deadly secret he’s harboring. Tropper and Dex are dispatched to Atlanta to deliver a suitcase full of cash to the director of their mob-funded movie, and then rough up a pesky film critic. Unbeknownst to them, FBI agents Kira and Julie are hot on their trail. Kira's got a no-nonsense approach to her investigative work, while Julie is distracted by her quest to uncover the great mystery of her past - a mystery that connects her directly to the very criminals she shadows to Atlanta. As if that isn’t enough powder in the keg - when Mob Boss Danny catches wind there’s a rat in his crew, he calls in a favor with an Atlanta broker to have his own guys taken off the chess board. Enter: Crash, an opiate-addicted stunt man who’s manipulated into carrying out contract hits in order to keep the pills coming. This explosive adventure thriller merges elements of neo-noir caper flicks, with gangster movie DNA. Think, The Departed meets Jackie Brown.