Dragged Across Concrete

Dragged Across Concrete follows cops Brett (Mel Gibson) and Anthony (Vince Vaughn) as they’re suspended in the wake of a minor scandal, with the pair’s dire money straits leading them to attempt a criminal job that eventually goes completely off the rails. It’s a fairly familiar premise that’s merely the tip of the iceberg in terms of what writer/director S. Craig Zahler has concocted here, as Dragged Across Concrete, which runs an overlong yet never dull 159 minutes, boasts a patient, deliberate sensibility that proves effective at establishing its various subplots and periphery characters – although it does remain clear, ultimately, that the movie is at its best when focused on Gibson and Vaughn’s respective protagonists. The actors’ seriously strong work here is matched by a stellar supporting cast that includes Tory Kittles, Thomas Kretschmann, and Jennifer Carpenter – the latter is heartbreaking in a mid-movie interlude that’s nothing short of shattering – and it’s clear, too, that Zahler does a nice job of peppering the slow-moving narrative with memorable, attention-grabbing moments and images. The end result is another superb, singular effort from a seriously talented (and somewhat peerless) filmmaker, and it’s hard to deny, as well, that Zahler has elicited one of Gibson’s very best performances in quite some time.

***1/2 out of ****