Gully – A Decent Performance-Driven Crime Drama

Kelvin Harrison Jr., Jacob Latimore, and Charlie Plummer are some of the best young actors working today therefore any chance to see them all work together in a film should be an event. After premiering at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival, Gully finally received a limited theatrical/home video release recently which is better than nothing. This crime drama’s subject matter certainly won’t be for everyone while its short running time, clocking in at under 90 minutes, make it a quick watch but that running time is also a hinderance as it limits the film in terms of depth with its story and characters in order to further drive across the emotion needed to connect with the film on a deeper level. That being said, there is still plenty of emotion to be had here. Though the film doesn’t all work, the performances from the aforementioned actors and their great chemistry as well as those from a few other big names in minor roles nevertheless still make the film well worth the watch.

Gully tells the story of three teens living in unfortunate circumstances in Los Angeles, Jimmy (Harrison Jr.), Calvin (Latimore), and Nicky (Plummer) have all lived tough lives in one of the poorest neighborhoods as they and their families struggled to make ends meet. Each having dreams and aspirations of something more, they found themselves frustrated and stuck within their circumstances. Looking for an escape from the inevitability of those circumstances, they acted out, seemingly acting against their true potential. Eventually what they were doing wasn’t quite enough for them so they suddenly decided to up the ante by emulating the video game that consumed them, pretty much a Grand Theft Auto clone, and acting out various scenarios in the real world. They essentially didn’t care anymore and it clearly showed in their actions over their path of destruction during a 48 hour period.

If anything, the virtual lack of consequences detracted from the experience though maybe since they were so insignificant in the grand scheme of things that they didn’t really matter all that much. Also, the thinness of the three main characters made their arc over the course of the film on the awkward side. Weaving in their backstories in with that arc, they all felt rushed and the balancing of the three in the midst of their spree hurt the overall flow of the film. In the end, Gully would be better served spending more time to flesh out Jimmy, Calvin, and Nicky before sending them on their way despite those backstories being on the derivative side and never really getting anywhere. Making up for that was the compelling sense of camaraderie among the teens, each bringing boatloads of energy which was compelling to watch. Meanwhile, the story followed another character from their neighborhood named Greg (Jonathan Majors), a man recently released from prison and looking to rebuild his life. Basically he was the other end of the spectrum and a possible future for the teens but other than that, he never quite fit.

Ultimately, the best part of Gully was as mentioned, the stellar performances from Harrison Jr., Latimore, and Plummer as Jesse, Calvin, and Nicky respectively. As a character who didn’t speak, Harrison Jr. still spoke volumes as Jesse, creating layers of pain beneath Jesse’s quiet exterior. Latimore’s Calvin was definitely the more chatty of the three as his energy was the driving force of the trio. The deeper of the three, he was a consummate scene-stealer as Calvin often cared more about his friends than himself. Rounding out the three, Plummer had some moments as Nicky and held his own alongside his two co-stars. Majors was solid as Greg but almost felt like an afterthought.

At the end of the day, Gully was a decent crime drama worth seeing based on its three stars but for some, it won’t be nearly enough.

still courtesy of Paramount Home Entertainment

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.