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'Wheelman' Review: Jeremy Rush and Frank Grillo raise the bar for sophisticated entertainment

Here is what I do know: Jeremy Rush is the newest renegade in Hollywood; he has something to say and knows exactly how he will do it. 
Netflix

Jeremy Rush really loves cars, especially the sound they make when driven correctly. This much is known early on in his debut film, Wheelman (available everywhere on Netflix today), about a getaway driver forced to dodge betrayal and gunmen while protecting his family on the mean streets of Boston.

The first frame of the film places us in the backseat of a BMW as the mechanic (William Xifaris) pulls it out onto the street for Frank Grillo's driver to go to work in. When the two men go over the shocks and brakes on the car outside a warehouse, we stay in the backseat as the engine settles into the idle position. As the plot develops and Grillo's Wheelman evades danger while bringing a fair measure of his own, the car(s) act as a supporting actor in Rush's film. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride. When Joe Carnahan and Grillo tapped Rush's film to launch their new production company, War Party, they need what they were doing.

Cameras sit low next to the tires as the vehicle turns a corner or speeds up, with an emphasis on the gears that the driver is ferociously maneuvering, jerking the car in different directions. This is all part of Rush's plan: create something cool and unique for film addicts. A sophisticated blend of entertainment that stays on the raw side of thrillers and wastes zero seconds of your weekend leisure.

Wheelman raises the bar in film for how to craft a true thriller, because it never abandons the importance of sound.

It helps to have an authentic man of action like Grillo at the helm of the chaos. He is in every single scene of the 82 minute film, carrying the film like a quarterback moves an offense down the field. He is the only actor to execute Rush's game plan for Wheelman, where every piece of dialogue counts, but a look can sometimes work better. The seasoned veteran has played tough guys before, but most of Wheelman leaves Grillo's driver in more desperate situations than assured, and it requires more acting and emotional range.

By confining him to the car for the majority of the film, the film proves Grillo can carry a film without the action hero element. He is up to the task and delivers a performance that should increase his legion of fans by thousands. If there is a real deal in film, Grillo is it. He's shown in past roles such as The Purge: Anarchy and Warrior that he can be an authoritative figure worth following, but in Wheelman, Grillo carries the film on his shoulders alone.

When Wheelman is forced to leave a pair of bank robbers at the scene and race off with $200,000, he is thrown into an intense situation, but Rush-along with cinematographer Juan Miguel Azpiroz-never let you out of the car. When the driver is rear-ended and gets into a gun battle, we see it from the passenger seat. When he drags his handler (Garret Dillahunt) into the car from a bar, we are in the car.

The movie gets more intense as it builds to its satisfying climax, but it never breaks its original cover. Most filmmakers would have gotten out of the car and moved the camera to a more familiar position. Thankfully, Rush isn't most directors. He is out to do something different. One could say bold, I'd go with sophisticated, because Wheelman clearly stands out.

Another example of Rush doing things differently than most shows in the relationship between the driver and his daughter, Katie (Caitlin Carmichael). What seems like a normal distraction during the first call between the two-one about a boy in the house and going out-develops into a heartfelt subplot as the events of the film develop and accelerate. By the time Katie physically joins the action late in the film, Grillo and Carmichael have developed something strong enough that a key conversation feels smooth and relaxed onscreen. That comes from great writing, which is frequently shown in Rush's screenplay.

The sound of this film crushes the bar of expectations. The Blair Brothers made me a believer with their Green Room score, but their music here fuels the second half of the film, creating a wall of feeling around slower and more vital scenes late. Kevin O'Connell won an Oscar for mixing Hacksaw Ridge, and his handling of all the gear shifts and sudden crackles of violence highlight the film's faster moments.

The supporting cast makes the most of small yet pivotal roles. Dillahunt has the film's funniest line while Shea Whigham, Wendy Moniz, and John Cenatiempo make single scenes shine. If you liked Slaine in Ben Affleck's The Town, you'll love his work here. Everything fits the scope of the tale Rush is trying to tell.

Did I mention the film is 82 minutes long? Padraic McKinley's editing is on point. Seconds aren't wasted in this movie.

Let me be clear: Wheelman isn't an action film. It's a genuine thriller with dramatic elements and about three scenes involving guns and violence. Everything in between is mood, presence, and a slow building proposition for bad intentions.

The more the driver gets pushed, the harder he pushes back. Seeing Grillo slowly flip out is a work of art, the Atlantic City locks of hair becoming more disheveled as Wheelman's enemies stack up. The aura of mystery around who exactly is twisting our protagonist's world adds to the intensity of the scenes. While action isn't the main dish at the table, you expect it to burst out at any point in the film. That's called being in the palm of the director's hand.

When I watch a great movie, I feel like I get to know the director during the experience. Watching Wheelman made me feel like I was sitting in the world Rush created during all those late night drives he took speeding around corners, sipping coffee in dimly lit diners, and studying old movies with big engines. I left salivating at the notion of his second film, which I hope is Wheelman 2. Does Wheelman play it straight, driving for Uber before getting sucked back into the criminal underbelly? Who knows.

Here is what I do know: Jeremy Rush is the newest renegade in town, and he has something to say. With Wheelman, Rush doesn't just raise the bar for getaway driver tales, creating a new allure for fast cars in the process. He shows you that coolness and precision can sit at the same table, and that Frank Grillo is the leading man we need yet probably don't deserve.

Clear your calendar, get comfortable, and turn on Netflix tonight, movie fans. Wheelman awaits.

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