This was a movie that came and went from theaters rather quickly, so I am glad I got to see it before it was gone, but also sad because it means there are plenty of people out there who missed it. While 21 Bridges is rather straight-forward and, in many ways, nothing new, it is told very well and expertly crafted. What it lacks in surprise or mystique, it makes up for in its attention to detail and the ability to not pull its punches. 21 Bridges is not long – it clocks in at just over an hour and a half – but it doesn’t need to be. You can tell that this film was made to get the job done, not to spend time on extra details or embellishing unnecessary details. There are some drawbacks – as I said, there are some moments that are a little cut-and-paste in terms of story, and sometimes that lack of time means that some character work gets a little shunted to the side. That is a shame in particular because an excellent cast has been gathered for this action tale, and sometimes you lose track of who is who. One review I caught of this movie was that it was not enough to ensure that the story gets a franchise, and to me, that’s a point in its favor. This movie is refreshing, and the fact that it understands it doesn’t need to be a franchise in this day and age makes it more enjoyable. Refreshing is the word I would use overall – fun doesn’t quite work, simple doesn’t quite cut it, but certainly not disappointing.
ReelTalk 