Review: Premium Rush (2012)

I tried really hard to watch Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy last night. Maybe I was just too tired, or maybe it's not the film for me, but I had to turn it off after ten minutes. Instead, I put on Premium Rush, a film I've been meaning to watch for a while. It kept popping up on IMDB as a film recommend to me, so I thought, 'why not!'.  I've tried to watch this film twice and fallen asleep both times, maybe I need to try one more time.  Third times a charm! Ok I tried again and got 30 minutes in before I fell asleep - I give up as much as I love Joseph Gordon-Levitt, this is just not a film for me :(

Wilee (Jospeh Gordon-Levitt) works as a bike courier in New York City, and he's also a complete mad-man, riding around on a bike with no breaks. I didn't believe bike couriers were even a real thing until I looked it up! Anyway, one afternoon, Wilee ends up picking up an envelope which is also being hunted down by a dirty NYPD cop who will stop at nothing to get his hands on it.

As a car driver myself, I have a natural aversion to cyclists anyway. Birmingham might not be New York, but it's still a nightmare to drive around in rush hour, and cyclists are such a nuisance! I thought Premium Rush might change my view and actually sympathise with the dangerous journeys cyclists have each time, but Wilee and his colleagues are so reckless that it just fuelled my aggression!

Serves you right, Wilee...

It terms of the film itself, I actually really enjoyed it. Wilee had some great witty lines, and there's one particular cop trying to catch him for his dangerous cycling that had me laughing out loud. He just can't catch a break and you can't help but feel sorry for him. The actual storyline surrounding the letter doesn't make much sense if I'm honest, but the chase scenes and humour make up for it.

One particular thing I liked about Premium Rush was some of the effects. When Wilee approaches junctions and crossings, time slows down as his mind processes which route he should take. You also get some pretty cool clips of the routes that the cyclists have to take. I can't find a great clip to emphasise this but here's a goof example of the chase scenes:

Although it had its flaws, Premium Rush is something a little different and it was fun to watch. Plus, come on ladies, who wouldn't want to watch Joseph Gordon-Levitt on a bike for an hour and a half?

Jenna, I now realise that you are the exception to that!