Movie Review: The Rip

While Netflix releases a handful of titles every Award Season that remind us they are capable of producing films that aim to be more than mere background noise while we doomscroll through our Facebook feeds, the rest of the year their movies tend towards expensive but soulless slop. There is the occasional exception, but more often than not their attempts at “blockbuster” fare make even the most hackneyed Hollywood production look like high art. Lucky for subscribers then that their just-released thriller The Rip is another of the exceptions, offering up more than enough excitement and twists to keep viewers’ attentions firmly off of their phones.

The Miami-Dade Police Department’s Tactical Narcotics Team (TNT) is under investigation after the suspicious murder of their Captain. Lieutenant Dane Dumars (Matt Damon), Detective Sergeant JD Byrne (Ben Affleck), Detective Mike Ro (Steven Yeun), Detective Numa Baptiste (Teyana Taylor), and Detective Lolo Salazar (Catalina Sandino Moreno) are all interrogated over the death, though nothing new comes of it. Afterwards, while the group is hanging out and chatting with DEA Agent Mateo “Matty” Nix (Kyle Chandler), Dumars informs them that he has received a Crime Stoppers tip about an address in the shady and corrupt neighborhood of Hialeah. Their shifts are over, overtime is denied, and common sense says go home, but the squad piles into their cars anyway.

Once there, their cash-sniffing dog begins to go haywire, raising their suspicions. The sole occupant, Desi Molina (Sasha Calle) reluctantly allows them inside where after much searching they discover $20,000,000 hidden in buckets behind the wall. Desi claims to not know where the money came from but also insists that the team take what they want of it and leave before danger arrives. Mysterious phone calls to the house offer the same advice, though suggest that whoever is calling doesn’t know just how much cash is actually present. Some of TNT begin to ponder over keeping some of the loot, some begin to argue over procedure, and some wonder whether there is a possible connection to Velez’s murder, all while Desi grows more insistent that they need to leave before it’s too late.

The plot is a touch overstuffed, but anyone who pays attention should have no problem keeping up and will be well-rewarded by the myriad reveals and twists in director Joe Carnahan’s screenplay (from a story he co-developed with Michael McGrale). The suspense kicks in almost immediately and only tightens throughout as we are left to wonder who can be trusted and what the real endgame of the situation will be. Carnahan has proven adept at staging action sequences before and remain so here, despite some occasionally muddy moments. The finale, which intercuts a vehicular chase with a hand-to-hand fight is a slight letdown, offering nothing original enough to be truly exciting and in the latter case looking like it was accidentally filmed on the set of an entirely different movie, though it does still prove satisfying.

The cast are clearly having a blast and their fun is infectious. It’s easy to believe that TNT are a cohesive squad that have worked together for years, while at the same time everyone behaves just suspiciously enough to keep us (and them) questioning their real motives. I will admit that I was pretty easily able to guess who one of the ultimate bad guys would be, but the rest of the surprises caught me completely by surprise. This is the sort of pulpy action thriller that we just don’t get enough of anymore, blending genuine brains in with the mayhem. Relentlessly suspenseful from start to finish, The Rip is well acted, cleverly plotted, and just plain fun. ★★★★