The Rip

As kids, we all have those big dreams about what we want to be when we grow up. Maybe it’s an astronaut. Maybe it’s a firefighter. Or maybe—if you’re dreaming really big—you want to be a movie star. That was the dream for two childhood friends, and in 1989 they got their first tiny taste of Hollywood as uncredited extras in Field of Dreams. It was just the beginning. After a few more roles along the way, they hit it big in 1997 with Good Will Hunting.

I’m talking, of course, about Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. They’ve now made around eleven movies together, and with The Rip, they’re back again—and honestly, they seem to be getting better with age.

The film kicks off with the death of a police captain, and with that comes a whole lot of unanswered questions. Lieutenant Dane Dumars (Matt Damon) was the captain’s second-in-command and is determined to find out who’s responsible. There aren’t many solid leads, but there is one strange clue: a text message from an unknown number pointing to an address that’s supposedly a stash house. Dumars believes it might be the key to everything.

So he pulls together his team: Detective Baptiste (Teyana Taylor), Detective Mike Ro (Steven Yeun), Detective Lolo Salazar (Catalina Sandino Moreno), and Detective Sergeant JD Byrne (Ben Affleck), who also happened to be romantically involved with the captain. The group heads to the house, where they meet Desi (Sasha Calle), who claims it belongs to her grandmother. But once inside, the team discovers a large amount of cash hidden inside a wall—an amount that immediately signals trouble.

And that money is just the beginning. By the end of the night, Dumars is going to find out exactly who was responsible for the captain’s death.

Written and directed by Joe Carnahan, from a story he developed with Michael McGrale, The Rip quite literally lives up to its name. Carnahan has a blast twisting the screws on the story, raising the stakes, and watching how the characters react under pressure. This is a full-on macho cop movie—and I mean that as a compliment. It’s about as much fun as you can have with this kind of material.

The setup is fairly complex, with Carnahan weaving together a tangled web of characters and motivations. But when the answers finally come, they’re delivered in a clean, straightforward way that works.

The Rip delivers a top-notch police drama, packing its runtime with tension while keeping you fully invested. So much of it works that it’s easy to overlook the few things that don’t—mainly that not every thread ties together perfectly. Still, the story is strong, and what really sells it are the performances.

Damon and Affleck are the clear highlights. Their relationship, the suspicion between them, and the sharp, profane dialogue Carnahan loves, all come together beautifully. You can feel their lifelong friendship on screen—the chemistry is effortless. But they’re far from the only ones bringing it. The entire cast is fully committed, and even actors who might feel overqualified for their roles fit nicely into the world of the film.

The Rip would have felt right at home in the ’90s, and that’s a big compliment. It nails the balance between suspense, action, and just a touch of humor, all while feeling grounded and real. I honestly didn’t know what to expect going in, but it didn’t take long to realize I was going to love this movie for exactly what it is.

The Rip tears into you in all the right ways, delivering a great cop movie that sets a high bar for 2026.