There are apparently countless tasks taken over from the superhero formula, so what fresh spin could possibly be left over? Debut screenwriter Mattson Tomlin has come up with a clever twist on the weary genre. The writer whose next job was co-writing another comic book, the upcoming one The Batman, asks the simple question: What if a pill could give you a specific superpower? Then he tackles the complications. It actually works, as far as it goes, and certainly provides a lot of fodder for action scenes and some intriguing characters.
Promoted by an evil, light-hearted government organization, Teleios, there’s a new drug in town called Power, and it can provide several superhero skills for the taker with just one swallow. The catch though is that it’s only five minutes good, so you need to plan its use better and faster. The other catch is that it looks like playing Russian roulette because the pill overwhelms you with a fantastic overpower, or it can kill you if you pick it up. A total crapshoot – but one that is terrifying for any addict, in this case someone is addicted to gaining power for their own purposes.
Frank (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a New Orleans cop who uses it in the line of duty, by collaborating with Robin (Dominique Fishback), the drug-addicted teenager who is also an aspiring rapper. , the music used to tell their own story by. In the picture comes Art (Jamie Foxx), a somewhat mysterious ex-soldier with a strong vendetta and personal reason to track down and dispel the forces behind Power. Although the relationship between this trio is a bit rocky and offbeat, they work a team to take the lead over the company and get the pill out of control of the bad forces at work and use it in mostly unsavory ways. Tomlin says his inspirational films were like Security en 8 Miles packaged in this particular genre. The latter, starring Eminem, was probably a major influence, as Rap is so integral in telling this story through Robin’s POV.
Directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman deliver the required action scenes at a brisk pace with chases and shoot-outs that are often shot for good measure. Somehow this would be the perfect car for Quibi, in that it puts its main characters in danger every 10 minutes or so. This movie also goes for the nonstop approach, but it works well. It also helps that it’s in the hands of a trio of appealing stars who manage to make us care what happens, especially Fishback, who is the heart and soul of this film. She’s great.
The supporting cast has done good work of Courtney B. Vance as a police captain who may have other things in his holster; Colson Baker (aka Machine Gun Kelly) as Newt, Robin’s cousin; Rodrigo Santora as Biggie, the main supplier; and Amy Landecker as Gardner, a brilliant scientist who is the brains behind Power. New Orleans, where all this is set in the course of a few hours, is another star in this firmament and shown with a great advantage.
Producers Eric Newman and Bryan Unkeless, the team behind Screen Arcade (Helder, Birds of Prey) are producers. Netflix starts streaming it on Friday. Watch my video review with scenes from the movie at the link above.
Are you planning to see Project power? Let us know what you think.
