'The Last Days of American Crime' Review: Beneath the blood, sex and violence is a simple love story
This review is spoiler-free
For those who have read Rick Remender and Greg Tocchini 2009 graphic novel, 'The Last Days of American Crime,' and then checked Olivier Megaton's two-and-half-hour violent blitzkrieg of the same name, they will be pleased to see that justice has been done to the sort of raw violence the comic dishes out. If anything, the film is a love story that comes with a generous dose of blood, brawl, guns and sex.
It is fair to say that Megaton's feature doesn't plan on winning hearts, it just intends to portray the possibility of a grim, dystopian feature where things aren't pretty. In a bid to end crime, mankind comes up with an invention that would mess with the brain's functions, stopping them from committing any sort of acts that are deemed unlawful.
Except, some brave, lunatic souls gather spunk, fuelled by some personal reasons plan to commit one final crime. In the end, the question to ask is, was all that planning worth it? Remember the good old saying "money is the root of all evil". Well, in the future, money isn't evil, it's a necessity. The necessity to survive, the necessity that pays for freedom, and unfortunately for Graham Bricke (Édgar Ramírez), Kevin Cash (Michael Pitt), Shelby Dupree (Anna Brewster) and Sawyer (Sharlto Copley), their plan of playing with something they don't know costs them. Big time.
There's not much time wasted on introductions. Bricke was a former gang leader who robs banks for a living. S**t goes sideways when the API (American Peace Initiative) transmits a signal that will forces individuals to follow the law. Bricke and the remaining members of his crew beat a hasty retreat as the signal is still in its testing phase. Their only hope is to get to Canada where these rules don't apply.
Parallelly, there is a storyline about Bricke, losing his brother Rory (Daniel Fox) in prison, and suicide is determined to the cause. Looking to use that grief and get some help from Bricke is Kevin Cash (Michael Pitt) who hopes to use the very same technology to commit a heist of a lifetime. In Brewster's Shelby is a talented hacker part of the plan (She's also Kevin's fiance) and a cop called Sawyer whose storyline is sadly cut abruptly.
Despite all the planning, Bricke realizes there's more to Kevin and Shelby. Each of them has their reasons to commit the crime and neither of them can be trusted. For those who hoped this would be a clichéd reluctant, but effective team-up and win story, it isn't. The trio is highly dysfunctional and while they may be effective, it's not enough to get them out of the jam they find themselves in. 'The Last Days of American Crime' is one of those films meant for comic nerds.
But that doesn't mean the movie is worth the watch. There are flaws, not one but many, but these can be overlooked considering the concept it borrows. For all the nudity and gratuitous violence, it manages to weave in a love story. Predictable and audacious as it may seem, the film still impresses with the slick fight sequences. Megaton will take heart from the fact that his cast has put their best forward for this one and that may contribute to the positive ratings.
However, this isn't a movie for everyone. 'The Last Days of American Crime' can be on the list of weekend films for those with a thing for raw action. And for the ones who were blown away by Remender's novel. From our end, the suggestion is to catch this one for some sheer entertainment.
'The Last Days of American Crime' is streaming on Netflix.