“The Rip” follows a group of Miami cops who discover a stash of millions in cash, leading to distrust.
A Slow Burn Setup
The film spends its initial stages setting up the environment. Most of the first 20 minutes consist of dialogue between characters rather than action. This gives “The Rip” a slow start, but a purposeful one.
It’s a simple setup – not overly creative or memorable. But its simplicity works.
After introducing all the characters, the film begins to ramp up the tension. Also maintaining its surprising nature in the process.
Continuously adding peculiar lines and slightly odd mannerisms, the movie keeps the audience guessing. This adds an extra layer of paranoia to an already tense situation.
The “bait-and-switch” approach contributes to the movie’s success – but also its downfall. At a certain point, “The Rip” grows too cliché and too repetitive. Falling into action stereotypes, it begins to lose any sliver of originality that it once possessed.
This doesn’t mean that it’s not still fun.
When the Twists Take Over
Still, once “The Rip” attempts to explain itself, it grows all the more convoluted. With a plethora of backdoor plans and hidden motives, the film is genuinely surprising. But it always feels the need to clarify these details. This is often when it loses its grip.
The last act of the film suffers because of this. It has all of the firepower, but little else. Overclouded with dull dialogue, it ends on more of a sour note than anything.
Joe Carnahan’s direction is sharp in the film’s middle segment, as distrust begins to creep in. Tonal inconsistencies loom large as it wraps up, though.
This doesn’t diminish the successful intensity that is built. Within the confines of a single house, “The Rip” is able to generate large amounts of tension – and that’s quite impressive.
A Cast that Keeps it Watchable
The visuals also add to the film’s achievements. It utilizes a variety of lighting sources to create blue-and-red or colorful ambiance in scenes. Outside of overblown muzzle flashes, “The Rip” constantly finds ways to attract the eye.
The cast isn’t to blame for many of the movie’s downfalls. Matt Damon (Dane Dumars) and Ben Affleck (JD Byrne) succeed in the lead roles. Damon isn’t loud, but he gets his point across. Quietly intimidating, he delivers lines in a way that always leaves a hint of doubt. At the same time, Affleck’s physicality can be felt through both his delivery and mannerisms. He does more yelling than talking, but it works.
Also contributing are Steven Yeun (Mike Ro), Teyana Taylor (Numa Baptiste), Sasha Calle (Desi), Lina Esco (Jackie Velez) and Kyle Chandler (Nix).
“The Rip” is a generic action-thriller that gives off “guilty pleasure” energy. It has a number of twists and turns that work, with a well-rounded cast that keeps it watchable.
Rating: 3 out of 5
