Michael Shannon Movies Blog

  I watched this Christmas film in August so I may not have been totally in the Christmas spirit at the time of viewing. It was OK, with a couple of laughs but I think Seth Rogan’s stoner persona is getting a bit old. The film opens with a book opening and a lot of rhyming couplets giving is the backstory of the three main characters. For a horrible moment I thought the whole film was going to be in rhyme but thankfully that was reserved for the preamble only. Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s parents are killed in a car accident and following their burial on Christmas eve his friends Seth Rogan and Anthony Mackie take him out. This becomes a tradition (the going out, not the burying the parents) and we get a trip through the ages as the lads have good festive fun in Christmas jumpers. One year they hear of ‘The Nutcracker Ball’ an exclusive and secretive party. They want to go but as the years pass they never get close to the fabled event. We then hit the present day with Mackie a late bloom...

  Here’s fun bit of nonsense. Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars as Wilee, a bike courier in New York. The ‘premium rush’ of the title is a special delivery that just has to get there on time. We are introduced to the exciting world of bike couriers in a fast paced opening as Wilee goes through what’s involved, and we get a load of on screen graphics and ‘what if?’ moments as Wilee analyses situations in a moment as we see the various possible outcomes play out – most of which have the riders wiped out. The film opens and closes with the familiar sounds of The Who’s ‘Baba O’Riley’ but this is no teenage wasteland - most of the cast, Wilee included, look like they are in their 30’s. Wiley works for an agency and has a rival in Manny and an off on girlfriend in Vanessa. They all have great tech kits and hearing, which lets them make and take calls whilst navigating NYC traffic. The thin plot concerns the delivery of a paper slip which is a Chinese money transfer receipt worth $5...