Triple Frontier, the action/adventure about five former Special Forces operatives whose planned heist in South America becomes an epic battle for survival, is a movie I found to be just okay.

Starring Oscar Isaac, Ben Affleck, Charlie Hunnam, Pedro Pascal and Garrett Hedlund, the performances were generally good. In terms of the themes featured, I like what director J.C. Chandor’s film had to say about the high price of greed. I’m also happy that Triple Frontier shed some light on the plight of US veterans. Particularly the general discontent in reference to how they really could be better taken care of. 

As for the reasons why I didn’t find the finished product quite as thrilling as hoped, firstly, it has something to do with how easily I was able to predict an outcome or two early on. Secondly, because each character’s backstory was presented so very briefly, it didn’t allow me to properly connect with a fair number of them, if any, in a meaningful way. This also relates to the villain, who barely had any screen time. I needed to see more evidence of why he was really deserving of the attack. Intellectually, it’s clear, yet more visual evidence would certainly have been great.

Lastly, I know that Affleck’s character is, in essence, quite depressed and therefore not fully himself. However, I still found it hard to completely believe that he behaved the way he did during the actual heist. Or that no one else stood up and stopped his ‘madness.’ To put it another way, I really thought they’d have planned better, generally and regarding how to deal with anyone who tried to go beyond the agreed plan of action.

I certainly don’t regret giving just over two hours to this movie, but I do wish it had me half as hooked and was as well-written as Sicario (2015). Now that’s a tension-filled thriller and a half. 

Happy Film Loving,

G

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