If you're reading this, then you should just be warned; I'm going to fill it with spoilers. Lots and lots of them!

Yesterday I took to watching Premium Rush with my best friend from college before we went for class and we were greeted with a somewhat empty cinema. So think couple seats for the price of regular seats. Indeed, we looked like we were watching movies at home what with our feet on the seat and us sprawled comfortably to the "couch". I did develop an interest to catch Premium Rush ever since the preview of it came out when I watched Step Up Revolution and I have to say, the preview does make it seem a lot more interesting than the actual movie.

Don't get me wrong, the movie is pretty good but it just didn't feel good ENOUGH. For one, you are not given the idea of what the wild goose chase was all about and for another, the whole time lapse of jumping forward and backward seriously messes up your minds. And then there's the whole jumbled up relationships between A and B to C and back to A and to D while whoever that was in the cinema would have gone, "HUH?". I'm not even going to get started on how it was unbelievable Wilee had time to analyze his routes while he was at the cross section of any road. I think if anyone were to ride the way he did, they would be long dead. Period. Oh, but I really do have to point out on how ridiculous it is that he was strapped on the stretcher one moment and in the next frame he is up running, cycling and jumping all around town. It's like he was on drugs or something.


Of course, the movie does have its good moments especially on how fast paced everything had to be and there has been a sense of mystery in it on what on earth Wilee was transporting. Plus a tad bit of heart warming feelings but that's really just it to the movie. Think lots of on the road scenes, lots of bicycles and a spoonful of laughs. And spandex. Think spandex. And now on to the casts. Did you think I'd leave you wondering about the cast? No.

My appraisals for the casting of Joseph Gorden-Levitt as Wilee for how he was such an eye candy throughout the movie (NOT the actual reason I watched it but it just...happened) and was given a character full of spirits, ego and a sense of believable adrenaline rush in him to avoid hurting himself at all cost yet pushing things to the limit especially while riding on a bike without gears going uphill and without brakes zooming across New York City. His enjoyable scenes of avoiding Michael Shannon and escaping from Christopher Place (as the bike guard) makes things surprisingly funny kicking in that badly needed comedic sense into the movie.


Michael Shannon on the other hand created an extremely strong character as Bobby Monday making you feel like you would like to run a drill over his head especially in the way he tortures his Mazda during the chase for Wilee. Sorry to say, I have never seen Michael Shannon in any other movies (I'm sorry!) but I would just about figure that he is quite the actor especially in having to develop so many different "characters" in a few minutes. The anger in him that you will see through the movie is appealing and he does give you the desire to want to know what drove him that way. I'll tell you. It was just greed. Go figure.

Dania Ramirez, in her character as Vanessa first hits on you as a cheating girlfriend of Wilee while she appears to have found new love with Wole Parks' character Manny. Things do take a twist as it is revealed on a later issue on why she had been so angry and does prove to be innocent while remaining as the loyal girlfriend she really is. The naive side to her character is shown in numerous scenes as she trusts in Bobby Monday and has great, high hopes for herself. Her body for one is something everyone should be jealous about. HAS ANYONE SEEN THOSE MUSCLES?!


Wolé Parks depicts the character Manny; the most annoying person in Premium Rush. But of course, it is Manny that indirectly saves the day and injects in some comedy to the movie. His desire to win Vanessa's heart gets a little overboard but that didn't quite cover the desire he had to win Wilee over on a bike race in addition to crossing borders for business. With every chance that he got, he would have taken it. That was Manny from the start of the movie and that was Manny till the very end. In fact, if there was no Manny there probably wouldn't have been a good movie. Cliché? Maybe.


Finally, Nima, as portrayed by Jamie Chung is someone of extreme importance in the entire show. Her acting (albeit the only other movie I have watched of her was Sucker Punch) does provide an extremely strong and memorable presence to the character Nima of whom was the one who has decided to send out the envelope in the first place. Her fears and tears appeared extremely gripping and has captured quite the attention she should have gotten right from the very beginning. I especially loved her mentioning of going to the nail salon because it just hit me right in my head like WHAT? I would however, like to point out on her weakness to the mastery of the English language but that is really just a minor set back. Her Mandarin performance was not exactly at the best either but that is understandable with her family background being Korean instead of Chinese. She has improved, but she does have extra space for more.

To finish, I'd say the movie is good for a little adrenaline rush but don't expect a lot of "ooo" and "ahh" moments because there's just a fair moderation to that. The movie is enjoyable, especially with the right company of which later would happily discuss it with you on moments that were realistic and others which has left you questioning the production as a whole. So go ahead, ride like hell.