"Premium Rush" review roundup: Should you go for the ride?
(CBS News) "Premium Rush" hit theaters today, and a majority of movie critics say it's worth the ride.
Colombia Pictures' new action-drama stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Wilee, a New York City bike messenger who picks up the wrong kind of a package: an envelope that attracts the interest of a dirty cop (Michael Shannon), who pursues the cyclist through Manhattan's streets.
"Premium Rush" comes from Hollywood director/screenwriter David Koepp, whose writing credits include "Spider-Man," "Mission: Impossible" and "Carlito's Way."
The film received a 70 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie review aggregator site, with critics praising the flick for its stunts and action scenes.
Here's a quick roundup:
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times: "You're looking for depth and profundity, this is the wrong movie. But under the direction of David Koepp ('Secret Window,' the screenplays for 'Mission: Impossible' and 'Spider-Man'), this is an expert and spellbinding adventure. I'm very weary of routine chase movies. There's nothing routine about 'Premium Rush.' Any action formula can be brought to life with enough imagination and energy."
Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times: "'Premium Rush,' starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Michael Shannon, is a lot like the ticking-clock thriller of 'Speed,' except instead of a big bus and a bigger bomb, there's a brakeless bike and a small envelope. Which actually doesn't sound like it would work at all as a tightly wound slice of street action, but it does, and in radically fresh ways."
John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter:"An asphalt-action tale as unadorned as the fixed-gear cycle its hero rides, David Koepp's Premium Rush supplies just enough dramatic rationale to set a series of Manhattan bike chases in motion and then follows without pretending it cares much about anything beyond the adrenaline. A quick pace and always-enjoyable lead Joseph Gordon-Levitt will please moviegoers, even if the pic's ticking-clock approach isn't as invigoratingly pulpy here as in the Koepp-penned 'Snake Eyes' and 'Panic Room.'"
Steven Rea of Philadelphia Inquirer: "As Gordon-Levitt goes hurtling down Broadway to deliver an envelope in Chinatown before the 7 p.m. deadline, 'Premium Rush' can't decide if it's a serious, ticking-clock thriller or an antic, stunt-driven cartoon."
Manohla Dargis of The New York Times: "Stuffed with zingers and zippy stunts, it comes with pretty young things of all hues and hair types -- few prettier than its lead, Joseph Gordon-Levitt -- and start-to-finish clever special effects, none more clever or special than Michael Shannon. If you want to see a political undertow in its urban band of multicultural renegades, there's that for the taking too."
Mark Feeney of the Boston Globe gave "Premium Rush" 2 out of 4 stars: "'Premium Rush' has a lot of energy -- too much, it's kind of exhausting. It also has a lot of trickiness. David Koepp, who directed and co-wrote the script, with John Kamps, piles up plot twists and flashbacks."
Tell us: Are you going to check out "Premium Rush"?