Motor City

When it comes to cinema, I think it’s meant to be pushed—to test its boundaries and explore what it can say and how it can say it. With all the summer blockbusters, remakes, and reboots, it’s easy to forget that movies can be more than just entertainment. They can challenge us, surprise us, or simply try something we’ve never seen before. Potsy Ponciroli’s new film, Motor City, isn’t trying to make some grand statement about the human condition, but it is taking a big swing. It’s a revenge movie with almost no dialogue, and the real question becomes: does that approach actually work?

Fresh out of prison, John (Alan Ritchson) is trying to put his life back together. More than anything, he wants to build a future with his girlfriend, Sophia (Shailene Woodley). Their relationship didn’t exactly begin like a fairy tale, though, as John helped Sophia escape from her controlling gangster boyfriend, Reynolds (Ben Foster). As it turns out, no good deed goes unpunished.

Using his connections to a group of corrupt cops led by Lieutenant Savick (Pablo Schreiber), Reynolds frames John as a drug trafficker and sends him right back to prison. With John out of the picture, Reynolds is free to reclaim Sophia, who has no idea what really happened and is left confused and heartbroken. While sitting behind bars, John receives a wedding invitation announcing union of Reynolds and Sophia. That’s the final straw. He reconnects with some old gang members, puts together an escape plan, and once he’s free, revenge becomes the only thing on his mind. Reynolds, meanwhile, has no idea what’s coming.

Written by Chad St. John, Motor City is built around one very bold idea: tell almost the entire story through action instead of dialogue. There are reportedly only five spoken lines in the entire movie, and while I didn’t count, it certainly feels that way. It’s a gamble, but it’s also what makes the film stand out. Without relying on lengthy conversations or exposition, Ponciroli lets the visuals do the talking, and for the most part, they do.

Set in late-’70s Detroit, the film embraces its era with slow-motion action, gritty style, and a soundtrack packed with classics like “Nights in White Satin” by The Moody Blues and Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love.” Every frame feels soaked in the decade, giving the movie a unique energy that’s hard not to enjoy.

Where Motor City really shines is as an exercise in stylish pulp filmmaking. Ponciroli fully commits to the concept, and that confidence goes a long way. Not everything lands, though. The pacing can be uneven, the editing occasionally works against the momentum, and the central gimmick eventually loses some of its impact. By the time the finale arrives, the movie doesn’t quite stick the landing.

The performances help make up for some of those shortcomings. Alan Ritchson brings an almost comic book-level physical presence to John, making years of bottled-up rage feel believable without saying much at all. Ben Foster continues to prove that he can elevate just about anything he’s in. Give him a memorable villain to play, and he almost always delivers.

The action is another major highlight. The stunt team deserves a lot of credit, as the fight scenes and larger set pieces are inventive, brutal, and consistently entertaining. They’re exactly what you hope to see from a movie like this.

Ultimately, Motor City succeeds more through attitude than execution. It doesn’t completely pull off its ambitious concept, but I admire the attempt. It’s fueled by brute force, a killer soundtrack, and a filmmaker willing to take a real swing. Sometimes that’s enough. Not every bold idea crosses the finish line perfectly, but I’d rather watch a movie that takes a chance and stumbles than one that plays it safe from beginning to end.

Brian Taylor

Member of the North Texas Film Critics Association, and lover of all things Cinema