The problem with cool movies that are filmed Downtown, is that I get distracted and start trying to locate where things are taking place. Do I know this building? Oh I love that restaurant! that’s a sketchy street, but it’s near a cool bar. Those are all things that run through my head while seeing DTLA images in TV and movies. This movie should have done that for me in the opening sequence. And it did to an extent, but it never took me out of the movie to a point where I was focusing on the scenery. That opening scene was intense. Driving through the streets of Downtown LA with cops in pursuit. I found myself leaning forward and gripping my popcorn. It wasn’t the most fast paced chase scene, but it was gripping.
I’d like to give a special thanks to everyone who saw prescrennings of it thought the year and used the phrases “ultra-violent”, “brutal”, and “bloody.” It was a good warning.
