Gringo : DVD Review


Gringo (2018)

Title: Gringo
Director: Nash Edgerton
Starring: David Oyelowo, Joel Edgerton Charlize Theron, Amanda Seyfried, Thandie Newton, Sharlto Copley, Harry Treadaway


Available to Download and Keep on July 2
On DVD July 16


Gringo is a black comedy from director Nash Edgerton (brother of the star of the film Joel Edgerton). It’s a tale of criminals and kidnapping in Mexico.


David Oyelowo’s Harold Soyinka is a Nigerian immigrant to the US. He’s a nice guy, but he’s a bit naive. He’s being played by his boss (Edgerton) and he’s getting a rough deal. His boss hasn’t even kept up payments on his life insurance for the regular company trips he has to take to the shadier parts of Mexico. Realising that he’s getting screwed Harold decides to pretend he’s been kidnapped to get his hands on a ransom. But his boss has sent in his mercenary brother (Copley) to rescue him. And then Harold gets kidnapped for real and things get really complicated.


The cast is well formed and although Treadway, and to an even greater extent Seyfried, are almost completely wasted on a related, but underwritten subplot, most of the characters get a decent amount of screen time. Newton however is granted the thinnest of reasons to feature - as Harold’s wife - she is having an affair with Edgerton’s character.


Nash Edgerton’s direction is very solid - it needs to be to keep everything, and everyone, in line, but the plot meanders at times and causes some confusion. But overall this is a film that will keep viewer’s attention throughout, mostly because of the interesting offbeat characters - especially those played by Theron and Copley.


Gringo is a fun, pitch black comedy about kidnapping and criminal drug cartels and drug lords, a morally conflicted block-ops mercenary, down Mexico way where nice guys like Harold are going to get into a lot of trouble. Is he out of his depth - or two steps ahead?

Author : Kevin Stanley