Dragged Across Concrete

S. Craig Zahler has the audience, as well as his characters, absolutely in the palm of his hand from the beginning and does absolutely whatever he wants with them. While the characters have no choice but to struggle, we have no choice but to watch because it's that great. Grim atmosphere, unexpected situations, impeccable actors led by Mel Gibson in his best role since Signs... As far as violence goes, it's not quite as murderous as Brawl in Cell Block 99, but the tension and pervasive bleakness make up for it all. However Zahler does it, he's once again written and directed one of those films that people call unforgettable. (01/26/2020)

Dragged Across Concrete is another good film by Zahler that may lack the shocking scope of his previous gem and some scenes look as if the talented filmmaker was trying too hard to improve and rip himself off, but patient viewers will not regret the time spent in the company of this mesmeric director’s vision. Pushing your expectations to heavenly heights would be a mistake, but it would be even worse to overlook this old-school and yet original and distinctive piece of craftsmanship. Personally, I will gladly go back to it. (03/27/2019)

“We have the skills and the right to acquire proper compensation." It is typical for Zahler that overarching plot is simplistic and the story in terms of “who, what, why, how" is clear from the very first moment. Basically, according to all principles, the story line should not be enough for more than a two-and-a-half-hour film. But it is. And the reason for that is unusually strong dialogs, characters and performance and gradation of individual situations. This is also reflected in his “author´s" directing. The scenes, as he shows them, would barely last a few seconds in movies of other´s directors or ended up on the floor of the cutting room. But in his movie these scenes are highlighted. He let them slowly flow in a non-film and statical way for long minutes “where nothing seems to be happening and where there might not be any reason for them". But there is. Subliminal tension, characters and actors who have the space to perform minimalist performances benefit greatly from this. So, it's still true that the length and slow pace are justified (except for the unnecessary anabasis around the character of Jennifer Carpenter) and that it's so unique that it's not for everyone. This time it applies even more, because inevitably many will confuse it with the film's message / opinion of the film maker and not of the characters, due to the real right-wing racist main characters of the “white angry middle-class men". But we can only blame time we live in. And we must admit that this time Zahler uses the “troll" level quite deliberately and damn skillfully (about 70%). Fortunately, however, this does not overshadow the fact that this honest and harsh criminal movie from an older than old school is mainly and above all based on the characters an (100%). (03/24/2019)

A noir version of Lethal Weapon, a film with a complex script and many characters, yet intelligible, dark, cynical and cruel. From a director who is not afraid to go beyond the edge of standards and in a sense does absolutely what he wants, creating a new subgenre – a dark alternative to Tarantino's films, where the dialogue passages are also often ridiculously over the top. A film from a different era with distinctive qualities, yet perhaps too long. (04/13/2019)

Two cops are suspended for six weeks. They need money and are angry, so they decide to rob a gang that is planning a big heist, but things go a bit wrong. S. Craig Zahler is still as uncompromising, surprising and unpleasant with his third film. And even though we already know what to expect from his stories, this time he manages to shock and unsettle and is as cruel to his audience as he is to his heroes. Fans of the director will not be disappointed by his new film, because this is exactly what we wanted to see from him. (03/24/2019)