“Reckless” follows Devon, a former convict on parole who must outwit the police to get his share of an old heist.
“Reckless” attempts to have its own distinct style, mainly through the soundtrack and editing. Musically, grime is heavily utilized, with fast-paced electronic beats constantly intruding on the action. Taking place in London, these sounds give it an authentic, grounded feel. The movie’s editing is also in-your-face. There are dozens of swipe transitions, cutaway gags and even complete pauses in key moments. Skipping past backstory, the film delivers character introductions and time jumps through animated sequences. These paper cutout-styled moments intertwine with the UK rap that is so prevalent.
While this is “fun,” it does grow old fairly quickly. The high-octane aspects ultimately give “Reckless” a structure that’s more similar to a television show than a movie. And because of this, the pacing and overall tone suffer. Even with a short 91-minute runtime, the film contains lengthy scenes that completely counteract the upbeat tempo. At times, it wants to skip past giving the audience information. In others, it includes extended bouts of exposition that over-explain. This then leads to the comedic, action and dramatic elements not blending. Matthew Robert Kelly and Stu Small’s script is never able to quite match the over-the-top style that director Elliott Montello brings.
That being said, there is still plenty of humor that lands. Similar to the 2025 Sky Original “Fight or Flight,” Montello’s movie injects comedy into the thrills. There are many laughs along the way — though, there are just as many attempts that don’t work.
“I want you to turn around, please. I don’t want you looking at me when I shoot you, alright.”
The action itself is serviceable. The fight scenes in “Reckless” are sharp and concise. Despite not lasting long, they typically feel real because of the messiness within. This is another similarity that it shares with “Fight or Flight.” There’s lots of hand-to-hand combat that takes place in everyday scenery, integrating hilarious props along the way. The “protagonist” also makes an abundance of mistakes, keeping it at least somewhat believable despite the inherent absurdity of it all. Stuart White’s cinematography aids in this, with handheld footage putting focus on every character movement.
Despite this, “Reckless” is too afraid to go all-in, so much so that at one point it even inserts an actual censored bar to cover up gore. This is all part of budgetary restrictions and somewhat fits in with the movie’s style, but more so comes across as a gimmick.
It’s often a dangerous game when movies ask the audience to root for a criminal, or at the very least, be invested in their story. Here, “Reckless” hopes that you’ll do just that, akin to another 2025 release, “Roofman.” And much like that film, it doesn’t work. As Devon journeys to get back the money he feels “owed,” I couldn’t help but… not care. He’s not a likable lead, making all of the hoopla seem like a way to garner sympathy for him. It’s this redemption arc format that causes “Reckless” to fall completely flat. Because the film doesn’t spend enough time on the characters in its early stages, the final-act resolutions never completely come together. As these dramatic undertones rise to the surface, there’s nothing of actual substance present to make them effective.
Scott Adkins (Devon) stars in “Reckless.” His character is direct but also not extremely “sharp.” Over the course of the movie, Adkins’ delivery makes you feel Devon’s exhaustion. At the same time, he still brings dry humor and intensity to the action. Alongside Adkins are Nicole Deon (Kimber), Vinnie Jones (Trent), Kris Johnson (Jackson) and Mark Strange (Bishop). It’s Deon who shares the most screen time with Adkins, and largely, the pair has solid chemistry.
“Reckless” provides spurts of entertainment, but only that — spurts. In attempting to be a stylistic action-comedy, it falls to the depths of being a laughable parody of better movies.
Rating: 2 out of 5
