[yasr_overall_rating]
A gang of criminals and corrupt cops plan the murder of a police officer in order to pull off their biggest heist yet across town.
According to this movie, a ‘Triple 9’ is a code that means “officer down – all patrols respond.” And it’s exactly what theses guys need when they find themselves in a very precarious situation. Michael Atwood (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a former special ops commander, leads a ragtag team of dirty cops which include Gabe (Aaron Paul), Franco (Clifton Collins Jr.), and some teammates from his old unit, including Gabe’s brother Russell (Norman Reedus) and Marcus (Anthony Mackie). Having gotten into a bind years earlier, only for the local Russian Mafia, led by its matriarch Irina Vlaslov (Kate Winslet), to bail them out, and the fact that Michael has a child with Irina’s sister Elena (Gal Gadot), Michael and his team are constantly having to appease her by performing highly-illegal tasks, which sometimes include murder and bank robbery.
With Irina’s husband in prison back in Russia, she discovers a way to break him out and presents it to Michael, stating that if he pulls this off, they will no longer owe her but it means that Michael and his group must find a way to break into the Department of Homeland Security and perform an almost impossible heist without every cop in the area all over them. One of his team suggests a Triple 9, a code used when a police officer has been taken down and which draws all local cops to that vicinity. They have no qualms about shooting a fellow officer, if it means that they will be free of Irina’s grip and Marcus suggests Chris Allen (Casey Affleck), his new partner. They all agree and they choose a date and time to perform their caper but when Marcus brings Chris to an old abandoned apartment complex on the outskirts of town, stating that he needs to follow up on a lead in one of his investigations, the real plan is for Chris to be shot and killed by one of Chris’ snitches and then for him to call in the Triple 9, taking all officers away from the city so that his crew can carry out their plan.
But the plan is thwarted when Chris evades the shooting and Marcus is shot instead, and when Chris calls in the Triple 9, Marcus’ group proceed with their plan, unaware that Chris is slowly putting the pieces of the puzzle together, which culminates in a showdown of cop against cop. “Triple 9” is a gritty, violent, and unflinching portrayal of life as a cop on the streets. It does not glorify the profession, it shows you, sometimes in painful exposition, exactly what these men and women go through on a daily basis. Even though Michael and his men are crooked, you still find yourself rooting for them, and hoping that should their plan work, they’ll be free of the Russian Mafia’s grasp and might return to being good cops but deep down inside, you know that is not going to happen.
Director John Hillcoat draws top-notch performances from his first-rate cast and keeps you glued to your seat until the film’s explosive finale. With so many different characters and intertwining storylines, in the hands of a less-capable director, the movie could have very easily become a meandering mess but thankfully, thanks to Hillcoat’s deft direction, that is not the case. “Triple 9” is a violent stroke of genius that cements director John Hillcoat as one of Hollywood’s finest directors.
In theaters now
