Good, but could have been Great (minor spoiler)

arildoaim

score 7/10

I, like the fans of the streetwise and realistic style of the likes of David Ayer will applaud this movie. It can somewhat be seen as a spiritual prequel to the directors former great movie Felon (2008). This movie is just as good, and even feels like an epic at times. If the movie was set in the 17 century or the roman empire, many of the same themes would apply. I don't need to praise it more, others have already commented the superb cinematography and acting.

While movie is good, it is sadly not flawless. The motivations of main character seems at times unreasonable. The screenplay should established a stronger motivation from the start. Why choose the impending life sentence over 18 months, if your main goal is your family well being? The dangers of not being in a gang should be more explictly adressed. It almost seems like he have a choice in the beginning, and could have been fine on his own. He wasn't particularly "unlucky" either, resulting in inevitable gang membership. And as a result of the unclear motivation, the plot then seems less tight. With some minor tweaks this would have been fixed. For all i know, i might been trimmed away in the editing room.

arildoaim 28 July 2017

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3766205/