No Sudden Move (2021) Movie Review
No Sudden Move is the latest movie from director Steven Soderbergh and it is a fun one. The film is set in the 1950’s in Detroit and has the old timey crime feel reminiscent of early gangster films. Curt (Don Cheadle) is strapped for cash and looking to leave town. He takes one last job that at first seems like easy money. He and two other men, Ronald (Benicio del Toro) and Charley (Kieran Culkin), are recruited by Doug Jones (Brendan Fraser). The job is to watch over an accountant’s family and effectively hold them hostage in their own home. The accountant is Matt (David Harbour) and Jones needs him to retrieve documents from his boss’ safe. That is the catalyst for all that follows in No Sudden Move.
Things go sideways when someone gets shot and the documents wind up missing from the safe. Curt and Ronald have to navigate dangerous waters as they aren’t sure who to trust. It doesn’t help that both are wanted by different men in the city, Capelli and Watkins, who we meet later on. The twists and turns might make your head spin, but that’s what is so intriguing about No Sudden Move. You truly don’t know what’s coming next and you wait with bated breath as Curt and Ronald are forced to pivot and think on their feet. The cops are thrown into the mix as Detective Joe Finney (Jon Hamm) arrives on the scene trying to piece together what is happening. The plot gets bogged down a bit and it truthfully is very complex. To be clear, this is not a movie you should have on in the background as you try to do something else. Your full attention really needs to be on watching the movie.
What makes No Sudden Move stand out is the impeccable style of Steven Soderbergh. He crafts a movie that feels old fashioned but has a modern day cast. The touches he puts on the movie are undeniable and I always appreciate that he takes some risks. He always incorporates some new element in each of his films and No Sudden Move is no different. In this one, he relies heavily on a fisheye lens which works in some scenes but gets old quickly. It makes you feel off balance and sometimes the distortion on the edges is jarring. It does add to the overall uneasiness of the movie as a whole but it will be something that occasionally takes you out of the flow of the story. He also keeps the pace zippy as we go from one scene to the next with very few moments of rest in between.
Soderbergh’s latest feature films have examined power structures and taken a look at economic and class structures. No Sudden Move is set amidst the backdrop of the auto innovation happening in Detroit in the 1950’s and he dives into the inequalities of those in power and those trying to eke out a modest living. It makes for a unique storyline and some interesting power dynamics throughout the movie. Stylistically, the movie is very Soderbergh and if you’re a fan you’ll be entertained watching him tell an ensemble crime movie. Even if you’re not a Soderbergh fan, the cast is fantastic and puts in very solid performances. Plus, No Sudden Move is just a fun old fashioned crime movie that will entertain you despite its faults.
You’ll like this movie if:
1. You like old fashioned gangster/crime movies
2. You like Soderbergh’s style
3. You like complex plots with lots of moving parts
