Heading to the Warren Theater on Thursday night, I was unsure of what to expect of the new action movie, “Premium Rush,” released Aug. 24 by Columbia Pictures.

To be honest, my initial interest in the movie wasn’t the storyline but rather the fact that Joseph Gordon-Levitt was the star of the movie. An hour and 40 minutes of some sweet Joseph eye-candy is reason enough for interest, right? I thought so.

However, I was rather surprised by how much I enjoyed the action-packed, adrenaline rush of a movie that not only kept me on the edge of my seat, but made me want to watch it again.

The movie takes place in the fast-paced and dangerous streets of New York. We are introduced to Wiley (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a college graduate whose degree could get him a respectable and very well-paid office job. But because of his free-spirit and anti-conformist points of view, he instead chooses to feed his adrenaline as an overworked and underpaid bike messenger.

We follow Wiley as he is given the task to deliver a package that, unbeknownst to him, is an extremely important and valuable package that will take him on the most dangerous ride of his life. During his adventure, Wiley is continuously threatened and chased down by Bobby Monday (Michael Shannon), who is a greedy, debt-ridden NYPD cop who will do absolutely anything to get his hands on the package Wiley is delivering.

After his life being threatened and almost getting arrested, Wiley gives up on delivering the package he knows nothing about and returns it to the sender.

However, after learning how important and vital the package’s deliverance is, he re-embarks on his journey. This in turn, leads to a life-threatening accident, a trip to the hospital, and having to hide from police, along with tons of plot twists and unexpected connections.

What I was most impressed by is how unpredictable the plot is, while still making sense and being appropriate.

The twists and turns of the story kept me and everyone in the theater unaware of what was going to happen next and needless to say, the theater was filled with moments of “Holy cow!” and gasps of sheer shock.

The scenes are fast-paced and the camera continuously changing, making the experience of the movie feel as if it were happening right in front of one’s eyes. At times, I felt like I was right in on the action.

Gordon-Levitt doesn’t disappoint in the least bit with his role as Wiley.

He takes the character of Wiley and captures our hearts by drawing us in with his whole-hearted, genuine acting. With so much passion in his eyes during the more intense scenes, it didn’t even feel like he was acting.

Shannon’s character as the bad cop undoubtedly is the most interesting character of the movie, and it is solely because of Shannon’s impeccable ability to make his characters so outrageous and unique, with his quirky and comical touches.

“Premium Rush” is great for anyone looking for a great action movie. With the great acting and unique, unexpected storyline twists and turns, it is definitely worth the trip to the theater. Also, getting to see Gordon-Levitt’s cute face is a plus.

Rating: B+

– Paris Burris

Online Editor

To contact Paris Burris, email onlineeditor@occc.edu.