IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A LEISURE afternoon ride because it was going to be my first. Mark and I were work friends; we had known each other for a few years. Our social activity together up until this point was sitting together at company functions or going out for drinks after work. One day we were talking, and I mentioned I had never ridden a motorcycle. Without hesitation, he said he rode one and asked me when I would be free to take a ride. We decided he would come pick me up on Saturday. It never occurred to me I needed a motorcycle helmet; but thankfully, Mark brought an extra one with him. Once he went over the safety instructions and told me how to convey a message to him, he had me get up on the bike to get used to it. The motorcycle was heavier than I imagined it to be. He placed the helmet on my head and adjusted the chin strap. With my jacket zipped up to my neck and my leather gloves snug on my hands, I wondered if I looked like Steve McQueen when he was on that motorcycle in the film, “The Great Escape.” WE STARTED OUT EASY WITH MARK sticking to the side streets around my neighborhood. Once I became comfortable, he headed out to the highway. I was not prepared for the bumps in the road which made me bounce off the seat; I kept squeezing my legs tightly around him. The roads he took from the highway were unfamiliar to me; but the scenery was beautiful through the forest we were in. At some point a strange sound came out of the motorcycle and it started slowing down. By the time Mark steered the bike off to the side of the road, the engine had died. He tried a couple of things to restart the motorcycle, but nothing worked. Reaching for his phone, he noticed he was not getting any cellular service for it; I tried mine but with the same results. I was starting to get concerned. Mark decided it would be best to push the bike further into the woods to conceal it, then we would start walking until we could call for help on our phones. While we walked, we started to talk more on a personal level, not the usual work conversation we did. The sun was setting and both of us were thirsty and tired. Luckily, we hit a spot where he could get a call out for help and a friend of his was coming to get us. I was grateful. After the weekend when I returned to work, there was a deeper bond that formed between us where we were no longer work friends; we were simply friends. The main characters in this dramatic movie took a different route. AFTER BEING PULLED OVER BY THE POLICE things quickly escalated in a series of events for Slim and Queen, played by Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out, Widows) and Jodie Turner-Smith (The Last Ship-TV, Nightflyers-TV). With Bokeem Woodbine (Overlord, Spider-Man: Homecoming) as Uncle Earl, Chloe Sevigny (Love & Friendship, Big Love-TV) as Mrs. Shepherd and Flea (Baby Driver, The Big Lebowski) as Mr. Shepherd; the story in this film had a familiar theme to it. However, the writers took the story and turned it into something else that totally grabbed me. The chemistry between Daniel and Jodie was thick and rich; I thought she was dazzling in the role. The script provided a clear path where one could connect to it and think about it further even after the picture ended. There were a couple of weaker scenes that did not work for me; but this would be only a minor complaint. My eyes were glued to the movie screen due to the incredible acting, directing and filming of this topical storied movie.
3 ½ stars