Thumper

I kind of like gritty movies about the drug underworld. This one was just OK. All the elements were there but the movie didn't really do much for me.

My main problem is I didn't like any of the characters. Even the protagonist. They all made such dumb decisions. And even the scenes of the protagonist's home life which felt like they were supposed to earn her sympathy ended up just being sad.

Not a bad movie by any means. But certainty not a great one. I suspect younger audience might like this more than those over 30. For me the movie was hard to connect with.

In a month or so I'll probably forget this movie completely and that is it's worst sin- being unmemorable.

Caught this on Netflix, I thought it started well and drew you into a story about teens, using and buying and selling drugs. Pablo Schreiber jumps off the screen, he does an excellent job and was perfectly cast, showing the corrupted raw instincts of a military veteran gone bad. The story is ultimately one that has been told many times but is a good tense gritty crime drama. Without giving away spoilers I can't go into the plot but think of a combination of 8 Mile and Breaking Bad. Every character was desperate in their own way in a tightly woven story.

I hate to say it but I think the weak spot was Eliza Taylor who is not up to the challenge of carrying the film and was a bit too soft for the part. I was surprised to see Lena Headey and it took me a minute to recognize her, she did a wonderful job as Eliza's boss. The best part of the film was the middle and the end did not live up to the tension, but overall worth watching.

I kept thinking I knew Meredith (Kat) from somewhere. Seeing her name in the credits didn't help until I looked her up. I knew her from when she was the strong but flawed leader of the last people left on Earth after nuclear war. Now that's quite a resume! To be clear, she might have done this movie first.

Here, she has a lot of confidence and yet half the time she is supposed to not know what she is doing. As an actor Meredith is quite good but as a cop she may have been in over her head. Plus she has to cope with being without her son., and not being able to do what she needs to for him. It's quite a range but Eliza Taylor has the ability to do it all. If it's so overwhelming she has to cry, she can do that too.

Pablo Schreiber also stands out. The opening scenes suggest a comedy where he is a Vin Diesel type who cares about his kids but is tough when he has to be. Actually, he is more tough than caring, and occasionally funny. And he is scary when he has to be.

Ben Feldman doesn't do a lot. I liked him a lot in "Superstore" but he looks so different here. He is a loving father with a positive attitude. Maybe too positive. He doesn't really fit in with the rest of the cast, but that's fine because he doesn't share scenes with the others and we need as much positivity as possible.

Jazzy de Lisser is one of the troubled teens. Just tough enough and somewhat vulnerable.

Daniel Webber is a teen in over his head, and he is likable enough, and not that tough considering what he must deal with. But he is caring and even strong when he has to be, as we get to see in at least a couple of scenes.

Jeremy Fraser is either developmentally disabled or really good at pretending. He doesn't do much, but as those who share a scene with him say, he does enough to be "cool".

Lena Headey is one of the cops in charge of taking down the dealers and the "cook" but she doesn't seem all that enthusiastic. But she's having trouble getting solid evidence so maybe it's not that she doesn't care.

This is a movie about drug dealers and users so despite the young kids shown briefly, don't expect kids to be able to watch. There is one scene with a birthday party. In the version I saw so many words were missing and the censors blurred a lot of objects shaped like cigarettes. Meredith/Kat smokes, but apparently if the audience can see what she is smoking, it is tobacco. And there is one particularly bloody scene where the audience is protected from the worst of it.

I don't remember much about music except there was a lot that I don't care for, which is to be expected with the characters here.

It's not what I would choose, but I think it's worth seeing for those who like this sort of thing.

The storyline is absolutely pathetic The undercover cop is so pathetic it's unbelievable .She was so thick ,she deserved to die in it ..Bonkers

I thought that the movie was interesting and amusing and entertaining and it kept me in suspense as to what would happen until there became some notion that nothing bad will happen and it sort of fell flat around 6/10 or 7/10 into the film. I liked the performances by Troy and the drug dealer. Beaver was a bit of a bore and I found that he did not act much at all just sort of behaved normally as any other day and so did the girl. So it was supposed to feel real like that film 'Kids' but their two performances just made it feel pretentious. Well, the decision of the woman in the film was far from realistic, and none of this would occur at such a level. I am angry that we did not get more of the drug dealer's story and Troy's story, as they are the only two who were interesting people and felt real. The others were forgettable and fake. Especially how she is a terrible cop who in no real way did any justice to the reality of tough, mature, and wise women who engage in such life and death behavior. It seemed to me like she was too sheltered to do this role and should stick to some sitcoms like Fuller House. But yeah, the guy who plays the Drug Dealer and his cousin Troy are good characters and actors and they made this film interesting. Some of the scenes were dragging on with the relationship between the two and the stereotypes were all there for every person built into a sort of dumb script but Sheiber and Grant did their part to perform in an adverse scenario. This writer needs to make a point and stick to it and focus on the strengths and drop the dead weight.