No-one who saw their previous film is going to be surprised that the Safdie brothers have succeeded in upping the ante, taking its most effective elements and ramping this up by a factor ten. This is splendidly frenetic filmmaking which throws the kitchen sink at the wall and hopes that it sticks. When it doesn’t, they just throw it even harder. You have to admire their chutzpah. The movie revels in the operatic energy of the city of New York, where bullshit and glory live side by side in perfect disharmony. In truth, Sandler’s Howard is such a sap, such a boludo, that it becomes harder to root for him: he seems to have wilfully put himself on a self-destructive course, heading back to the frying pan just as he’s escaped the fire. (In which regard he’s very similar to Pattinson’s character in Good Time). However, the rollercoaster is what matters, and Howard’s stupidity keeps the ride going. In this sense he’s a classic Trumpian figure, and it wouldn’t be hard to make an argument that underneath the bravura and bling (the film is literally constructed around the idea of ‘bling’) there’s a scathing political subtext. Fair play to the brothers and let’s hope they don’t get sucked into the franchise business. Whilst its possible to think their schtick is way over the top, it feels as though they’re some of the few filmmakers out there who are capable of creating narratives which understand and function in ‘the market’ but are also capable of saying something about it, without having to resort to CGI or glossy special FX.
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