The tax collector, a new crime thriller starring Shia LaBeouf, starring film critics.
The film, which is written and directed by Suicide SquadDavid Ayer, follows LaBeouf and Bobby Soto as two enforcers for a crime lord who run into trouble when an old rival reappears.
Critics have shut down the film for perpetuating negative stereotypes of Latino people, with The Los Angeles Times author Carlos Aguilar says: “One of the most horrific viewing experiences of the year, The tax collector relying on a trite visual language built on obvious flashbacks and faint imagery that match the unimaginatively horrific writing, where every Latino in sight is a gangster. “
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Jeannette Catsoulis, for The New York Times, described the film as a “generic gangland banger” with a “crazy illogical plot”. She adds that LaBeouf did his best to get the circumstances done.
VariationPeter Debruge pulled no strings, writing that the film is “bloody, barely cohesive and almost as fun as having your face over asphalt towed by a moving SUV”.
IndieWireEric Kohn called the film “a slap in the face of vulgar threats and violent outbursts”, adding that it “betrays substance for anger until the credit points bring some measure of peace”.
The tax collector has been controversial in the run-up to its release. Ayer was earlier this year forced to defend the role of LaBeouf after it was suggested that he play a character of Latin American descent.
However, Ayer has said that although LaBeouf’s character is influenced by Latino culture, the actor is in fact playing a white man.
Ayer’s 2012 police thriller End of Watch, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña, was also controversial. It was condemned by some critics for its portrayal of almost exclusively black and Latino criminals.
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