![]() ![]() The three of them, plus a sweet kid sister, find themselves in the middle of Goynes and Russos’ job. HBO kid regular Noah Jupe is their over-curious moody teen, Matthew. She Dies Tomorrow filmmaker Amy Seimetz, who wrote and directed the first season of the Soderbergh-produced series The Girlfriend Experience, plays depressed and slightly unruly housewife Mary Wertz the beloved Stranger Things actor David Harbour is her emotionally absent husband, Matt. Goynes, though, is less focused on Russo’s character and more attentive to his own possible gains he has accounts to settle. That they have to make a team is an insult to Russo, who’s an overt racist, suspicious of Black people’s greediness, as he calls it. Goynes and Russo know and fear a lot of the same people, but they’re fundamentally opposed. Del Toro plays a cryptic Italian lowlife, Richard Russo Cheadle is overambitious aging fuck-up Curt Goynes. ![]() Soderbergh regular Don Cheadle and Traffic alum Benicio Del Toro head up the cast as two Detroit hoods who get in over their heads. Soderbergh, working as he often does with casting director Carmen Cuba, has assembled a top tier cast of character actors with a sprinkling of previous blockbuster stars. But the jockeying is futile in some cases, of course: Whoever’s not at the top already knows they’re probably not going to get there. How, then, does this den of thieves navigate the terrain of big money backstabbing to get what’s theirs? In Steven Soderbergh’s latest movie for Warner Media/HBOMax, No Sudden Move, men and women jockey for their place in the pecking order of American wealth and status in the 1950s. Except, it turns out the gig is not so good. Screenwriter Ed Solomon had previously collaborated with Soderbergh on the HBO mini-series Mosaic, and here the writer deftly connects the criminal underworld to a real-life big business conspiracy that serves as the MacGuffin, which keeps the complex plot in motion.A few small-time criminals-freelancers, if you will-get what seems to be a good gig from the organized crime bosses. No Sudden Move is a complicated and taut drama, a superb heist movie, but above all a brilliant neo-noir set against the backdrop of racially-charged Detroit of the 1950s. Overall, it’s a distracting choice that feels like an impediment to our complete immersion in the story. Behind his RED digital camera, Soderbergh mostly elects to use an anamorphic lens that frequently warps the edges of the frame. The mid-century period setting, with the locations used, the costumes and the cars, is especially rich in detail. Another one of Soderbergh’s favourite actors (uncredited) makes a significant cameo towards the end. Bill Duke gives a formidable performance as a soft-spoken mob boss. The film features a few of the director’s favourites, including Don Cheadle, Benicio del Toro, David Harbour, Jon Hamm, Amy Seimetz, Brendan Fraser, Kieran Culkin, Noah Jupe, Craig Grant (in his final appearance), Julia Fox, Frankie Shaw, and Ray Liotta. With a measured pace, Soderbergh directs his ensemble with a sure hand, extracting detailed and nuanced performances from each actor. Hence the story’s “motor city” Detroit setting, circa 1954. Inevitably, things don’t go as planned, and so Goynes and Russo follow the money, eventually uncovering a huge, real-life conspiracy that involves several of the biggest American car manufacturers. Goynes, Russo and Charley invade the home of GM employee Matt Wertz (David Harbour), take his family hostage and persuade him to steal important documents from his employer. The three men are independently recruited by Capelli’s bag-man Doug Jones, played effectively with menace and gravitas by Brendan Fraser. Goynes is hired alongside another criminal, Ronald Russo (Benicio del Toro), and Charley (Kieran Culkin), as muscle for a seemingly straightforward “babysitting” and extortion job for local Detroit mob boss Frank Capelli (Ray Liotta). In No Sudden Move, Don Cheadle plays Curt Goynes, a small-time criminal recently released from jail. Solomon’s convoluted noir screenplay takes us on a steady journey of betrayals that eventually arrives at a satisfying ‘full circle’ denouement. Scripted by Ed Solomon ( Men in Black, Now You See Me), and directed, photographed and edited by Steven Soderbergh, No Sudden Move is a gripping period crime drama. ![]()
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