The Russian mob is blackmailing crooked cops, forcing them to attempt an impossible heist.
Caught in the middle of it is a good cop (Casey Affleck) who has just been partnered with a long-time crooked cop (Anthony Mackie).
We say, “Triple 9 doesn’t quite deliver.”
HOWE: With Casey Affleck starring in Triple 9, I was looking forward to this. Even though he is not a great actor by any means, he doesn’t usually make bad movies.
Triple 9 is an exception. It has all the right ingredients to succeed, but feels a little flat.
As always in a movie like this there’s the staple of things to cross off the list: car chases, double crossing, greed and the new outsider who doesn’t fit in, to name a few of them.
TAYLOR: I didn’t think it was bad, a little predictable perhaps, overall, but it didn’t bother me. The characters and their little back-stories make for an interesting group of people: crooked and honest cops and robbers.
HOWE: My biggest problem with the film was the acting. With such a strong cast, I would expect a lot higher standards, yet it was let down by some below par acting and in some cases down right cringe-worthy performances.
Clifton Collins Jr., who plays Franco Rodriguez, was probably the worst of the bunch. Yet saying that, Affleck and Woody Harrelson were very close behind him.
TAYLOR: I never expect much from Harrelson. He is fine at being Woody and seems to be at home with characters who are a bit off.
The drama and action are large and the acting, for the most part, was inconsequential. Anyone could have been any of these characters. But I agree that the film isn’t anything special, just another heist movie.
HOWE: If you want a good thriller starring Affleck, I would say save your money, buy a soda, throw a bag of popcorn in the microwave and order Gone Baby Gone from On Demand for a couple of dollars instead.
– Howe gives Triple 9 2 “I know how this is going to end” out of 5.
– Taylor gives it 2.5 streetlights at night out of 5.
Reel Reviews with Brian Taylor and Peter Howe appears in The Morning Star every Friday and Sunday.