“Contraband,” the remake of the Icelandic thriller “Reykjavik-Rotterdam,” is an average heist thriller that combines varying elements from past movies coming from the same genre. This smuggling and double-cross piece is filled with bits of greased action and by-the-numbers suspense that sometimes work, sometimes doesn’t. It is the type of popcorn flick that comes off the factory floor with the engine running well, but it soon starts getting sluggish — way before one round of production is even completed.
Mainly set in freighter ships with dock workers playing around with maritime law enforcers, the story follows an ex-smuggler’s return to business as he is forced to pay the debt of his brother-in-law. After many years of retiring from a life of crime, he finds himself on another journey on the high seas where he must outwit a rival gang who double-crosses him while in assignment. Things become even more challenging for him as he realizes that his wife and two kids are becoming instant casualties of the dark past he lived, which is now haunting him to really go back to his old ways.
“Contraband” is somewhat enhanced by a strong cast of A-listers, but the combined powers of Mark Wahlberg, Kate Beckinsale, Ben Foster, and a handful of other fine acting talents are still unable to keep the film from suffering from its flat dialogue and poor execution.
The movie’s main problem is that it plays too safe. There seems to be no risks at stake with how it presents its convoluted story. It misfires on its own intent to cruise around the dark realities of underground businesses and gangster negotiations. It merely becomes a suspense-action exercise that explores the world of lowlife grime, criminal operations, and power tripping moments.
Although it is generally able to set the mood and feel the story needs, it still struggles to deliver the goods. It squanders its potential by utilizing a script that is filled with too much plotholes. From the many contrived relationships to the unlikely coincidences in the storyline, this predictable fare only provides a couple of independent scenes that shine as genuine, suspense-filled moments. However, adding them together makes them less than the sum of their actual parts. The style is there, but the storytelling falters. It feels more like an exercise in eluding capture, which may or may not work, depending on the moviegoers’ varying tastes and preferences.
On the technical side, “Contraband,” is a decent affair as far as pulpy crime thrillers go. The shots and edit are able to keep the freighter ships’ interiors tense and claustrophobic. Amidst the overly familiar ride of its action-packed scenes in between New Orleans and Panama, it offers some rowdy occasions with enjoyable bursts of silly escapism for its willing audience. However, most of the scenes still don’t have that gut-punch factor. It is still a disposable actioner that relies on its clichéd nick-of-time scenarios to pull off some thrill and suspense.
Nothing in this formulaic piece stands out as spectacular. At the very least, the film can still work as an entertaining offering for those without high expectations. It is primarily a serviceable movie to watch for the non-demanding audience.