Action-packed ‘Instigators’ stirs up a good time
How do you feel? That’s the oft-repeated question percolating throughout the Boston-centric buddy pic, “The Instigators.” The query is always directed to Matt Damon’s hangdog dad, Rory, a Quincy floor sander desperate to make amends with his teenage son. The person inquiring is Hong Chau’s Dr. Donna Rivera, a shrink with the VA who rightfully worries the ex-Marine is on the brink of offing himself.
How does Rory feel? Apparently, pretty miserable. And it will only get worse if he doesn’t get his hands on $32,480, and fast. Why? That’s the $32,000 question that opens a portal into one of the wildest bungled robberies in cinematic history, as Rory suddenly finds himself on the lam from cops, crooks and a corrupt mayor, with only Casey Affleck’s drunken co-conspirator, Cobby, as his ally. Well, that is until Dr. Rivera unexpectedly joins them in their haphazard getaway.
How will you feel watching it? Highly entertained, because “The Instigators” is by far one of the best films of the year, one overflowing with star power, finely honed writing and some of the cleverest uses of Boston-area locations in recent memory. It also marks the third successful collaboration between Damon and Affleck who previously shared marquees for “Gerry” and “Good Will Hunting.”
The two have undeniably established a bond that brings out the best in each other, as they ratchet up the charm in a convincing portrayal of opposites who can’t help but attract. And what they attract most is our undivided attention, as director Doug Liman puts his two Oscar-winners through a grueling 24-hour ordeal in which their characters will be targeted by bullets, bombs and banter that’s as sharp as it is irresistible. They trade a lot of it, courtesy of a script by Chuck MacLean and Affleck that accentuates wit above all else.
It might be a little too inside Boston at times, with gags that only natives and longtime residents like me will fully appreciate, but its fundamental message about loyalty, friendship and working together is universal. In many ways, Damon and Affleck are comedic counterparts of Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier in “The Defiant Ones,” two lawbreakers with nothing in common forced to put aside their differences in the name of survival.
Of course, it helps that their pursuers are – shall we say – on the lower end of the IQ scale. They include Michael Stuhlbarg’s Mr. Besegai, a two-bit, small-time felon who would have seemed right at home in another Quincy-set blue-collar crime classic, “The Friends of Eddie Coyle.” It’s his harebrained idea to consign Cory, Cobby and Jack Harlow’s surly Scalvo to relieve Mayor Miccelli (Ron Perlman) of his latest ill-gotten gains during an election night soiree (emceed by Rob Gronkowski) on the Boston waterfront.
As mentioned above, the caper quickly goes south, but not before Rory and Cobby abscond with Hizzoner’s precious gold bracelet, a family heirloom. Or, so we’re told. Bad move. The theft sparks a one-man police manhunt. But this is no ordinary cop, it’s Frank Toomey (Ving Rhames), whose name alone strikes fear throughout the underworld.
How does that make Mr. Besegai feel? Panicked. Same for his chief accomplice, Ritchie (Al Molina), a baker who helped cook up the botched robbery. Desperate, they dispatch their chief fixer, the unfortunately named Booch (Emmy-winner Paul Walter Hauser in an all-too-brief cameo) to dispose of Rory and Cobby, assuming Frank doesn’t get there first.
What ensues is an unmitigated blast, combining laughs, thrills and the sort of tense action we’ve come to expect from Damon and Liman, who memorably combined forces on the first three Jason Bourne flicks. You name it – shoot-outs, car chases, explosions … it’s all here, nicely bundled and shot by cinematographer Henry Braham. But it’s the human interactions between Rory and Cobby, two Quincy guys whose lives haven’t exactly turned out as they would have hoped, that are the chief allure. You feel genuine empathy and affection for both.
Toss Hong’s overly benevolent shrink into the equation as the duo’s “hostage,” and you’ve got a trio you don’t just root for; you become deeply invested in whatever fate awaits them as they manage to evade one death-defying situation after another. Where it all ends is as much of a surprise as every other moment in a movie that boldly dares to defy convention.
How will you feel afterward? Pretty damn good. Or, as we Bostonians might say, wicked awesome!
Movie review
The Instigators
Rated: R for pervasive language and some violence
Cast: Matt Damon, Casey Affleck, Hong Chau, Ving Rhames, Ron Perlman, Toby Jones, Al Molina, Paul Walter Hauser and
Michael Stuhlbarg
Director: Doug Liman
Writers: Chuck MacLean and Casey Affleck
Runtime: 103 minutes
Where: In theaters Aug. 2 and on Apple TV+ starting Aug. 9
Grade: B+
