Asphalt City

Penn and Sheridan do some top notch acting in this film that is filled with doom right from the opening frame. It essentially becomes a series of first responder vignettes that string together a very thin plot. It's more about the relentless atmosphere and pressure of the job than it is about these particular characters. Near the end they are put in some impossible and very unpleasant situations. Of course those are by design to showcase that we as humans are always in control of our choices.

In a story, the writers control what happens to the characters absolutely. The foundation of some films is such that the characters get shat on nonstop and are just trying to survive the misery that's piling up. I'm generally okay with that as a premise, but the story needs to move past that. The whole movie can't just be increasing the rate and severity of the dumping. Plots need more than just that single repeating, increasing plot point. Stories need more than that. The acting was phenomenal.

Pretty intense movie with good performances overall. I like the concept as well, but something vital was missing to connect with the movie. Not sure what it is. It wasn't memorable or impressive for me.

Sauvaire's is a much grittier and more grownup answer to Scorsese's "Bringing Out the Dead", though it wobbles along an uneasy line between that basic realistic approach and the urge to turn the drama up to ten. Ultimately I felt that its intelligence and integrity more than make up for its sledgehammer subtlety, but calming down in a few areas, such as the soundtrack, might have made it even better.

(BRINGING OUT THE PENN)

This movie is intense. It highlights the often miserable job of being an emergency responder in a big city, and the heavy toll it takes on the people who make it their career. This is one of the most thankless jobs, were success is measured in how well you can hold yourself together in what often seems like a war zone. It might give you a new found respect for the men and women who take this on.