What do you suppose is the life expectancy of your average big city bicycle messenger?
I don’t like bike messengers. There’s a big difference between getting thrown into a life-threatening situation and actively seeking one out. As a commuter, I loathe peers who care nothing for safety. So Premium Rush, an homage to these 9-to-5 Evel Knievels, had a bit of a battle to get me on its side.
It won.
Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is the king of the bike messengers. Unfortunately in our world, this is the equivalent of being MVP of little league. Sucks being the best at a profession few respect. Wilee’s bike has no gears and no brakes. Took me a while to comprehend the latter, and even watching him constantly skid to a stop (isn’t that rough on the tires?), I still found it difficult to understand. You voluntarily ride the streets on Manhattan at break-neck speed without brakes on your vehicle? Anybody else here picturing the SNL “Bad Idea” jeans commercial?
Premium Rush is a real time movie. Wilee accepts a McGuffin at Columbia U. just after 5 with a due date of 7 p.m. in Chinatown. He doesn’t even escape NYC’s Ivy before Bobby Monday (Michael Shannon) attaches himself. Michael Shannon is a great actor to have around when your movie needs to be creepier. He kinda reminds me of a cross between Frankenstein’s monster and one of the Bowery Boys. When he moves as 
recklessly in a car as Wilee does on the bike, that’s spooky. You really, really want Wilee to give him the slip. You’d think roadblocks or going against traffic would impeded the pursuit, but it doesn’t. When Wilee finally slips Monday (temporarily) only to pick up a police tail, also on cycle — it’s kind of an out-of-the-frying-pan-into-the-fire kind of movie.
I simply adore the subtlety of Wilee, once having eluded the bike cop (again, temporarily), actually stopping by a police station to complain about his motorized pursuant. We believe in what cops do, just not all the time. Ah, hypocrisy, ain’t it a bitch? When POLICE DETECTIVE Bobby Monday shows up at the station, check out how the plot evolves.
Wilee has this uncanny sixth sense – not unlike Spider-man; do all these guys come from NYC?—he can anticipate multiple paths ahead and envision CGI versions of himself snaking through traffic or getting clonked by a moving obstacle depending on path. It’s kind of like Next, except for the not-sucking part. To the credit of director/cinematographer/editor, I couldn’t pick out Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s stunt double. Far as I could tell, Joe was the only one riding the gearless bike. An outtake even suggests he did at least some of his own stunts.
A reckless kid in demand
Takes chances like no one else can
The cops give chase
While aliens erase
Oh wait. I’m thinking of Repo Man
Rated PG-13, 91 Minutes
D: David Koepp
W: David Koepp, John Kamps
Genre: X Games
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: Bike messengers, duh.
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: Cabbies
