21 Bridges (2019)

Directed by: Brian Kirk | 99 minutes | action, crime | Actors: Chadwick Boseman, Sienna Miller, JK Simmons, Stephan James, Taylor Kitsch, Keith David, Alexander Siddig, Louis Cancelmi, Victoria Cartagena, Gary Carr, Morocco Omari, Chris Ghaffari

In ’21 Bridges’, NYPD detective Andre Davis (Chadwick Boseman, known to the general public as Black Panther in the Marvel franchise) is called in. Although he says he only shoots when absolutely necessary, Andre is labeled “trigger-happy” by his colleagues and his career is on the line after a number of fatal shooting incidents.

In a flashback we see the origin story of detective Davis, where he attends his father’s funeral as a child; an honest cop murdered by criminals. Shaped by this moment, Andre becomes a detective on his own mission to rid the world of cop killers. When several police officers are killed in a burglary, Andre seizes the opportunity to save his career by finding the perpetrators.

Earlier, we see these amateur criminals break into a restaurant to steal a large amount of cocaine. But when a group of cops unexpectedly show up at the door, they shoot their way out, leaving the cops for dead. Davis decides to close all entrances and exits to Manhattan, including the 21 bridges connecting the island to other neighborhoods. An original and exciting fact for the can-and-mouse game to follow. Unfortunately, no attempts are made to escape Manhattan and the action mainly stays indoors, so the film could have been better called ‘5 Buildings’ or ‘1 Subway’.

Davis and his narcotics partner Frankie Burns (a surprising, successful role by Sienna Miller) give chase. The more they manage to corner the suspects, the more information will surface about the case. This makes for some surprising plot twists. Is Detective Davis on the hunt for the right criminals? And who is chasing him? Although the plot feels a bit messy because of this, the action scenes are exciting and Boseman knows how to convince as a moral knight. ’21 Bridges’ is not a memorable film, but good for an evening of action and entertainment.