Directed by Jeff Nichols (Midnight Special (2016); Loving (2016); Take Shelter (2011)) and starring Jodie Comer (National Theatre Live: Prima Facie (2022); Free Guy (2021); Killing Eve (tv series, 2018-2022)), Austin Butler (Elvis (2022); Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019); The Dead Don't Die (2019)), Tom Hardy (The Revenant (2015); Inception (2010); The Dark Knight rises (2012); Dunkirk (2017)) and Mike Faist (West Side Story (2021); Challengers (2024)).
Drama; 116 mins; 12+
Set in Chicago in the 1960s, the film follows Danny (Mike Faist) as he photographs - and interviews members of - the Vandals, a motorcycle club established by Johnny (Tom Hardy). The photographs are later published in black & white in a book from which the idea of the film was born.
Kathy (Jodie Comer) describes how, in a chance encounter, she met Benny (Austin Butler) and was instantly attracted to him, and is the main voice throughout the film as the old-style storytelling reveals bit by bit how the motorcycle club came into being in the mid-West during a rebellious time in America and how it ultimately fared.
Comer and Butler steal the show, and Hardy is not bad either, when less is certainly more - no over-the-top acting or accents... The audience can certainly build empathy towards the characters, with group dynamics, leadership and loyalty the main focus of the storytelling.
The club grows and evolves under Jonny's quiet, but ultimately threatening and subversive, leadership, and others want to join and create new chapters in different cities. While the underlying intimidation are there for all to see, audiences are protected by an invisible shield that allows us to almost be a fly on the wall, catching a glimpse into the inner circle dealings. While some violence is portrayed on the screen, it is mainly the threat of violence that is continually there, that keeps everyone in tow. At least for the majority of the time.
Loyalty means everything, both for newcomers wishing to join, and for established members who cannot be seen to be wavering at all. While attendance at events - some called "family picnics" - may not be obligatory, absence from them is certainly frowned upon. The club is a meeting place, and they do go on rides, but not all their lives are spent in the saddle.
Kathy has aspirations to change Danny, but deep down she knows he is tied to the gang (club)...
A thrilling ride.
Currently screening in Luxembourg at Kinepolis.
