Mikes Film Talk

The 2023 production of Asphalt City proves to me once and for all that I will never be a Sean Penn fan. As a mate of mine used to say,”I ain’t gonna lie about it.” While he captivated me in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, the bloom went off that rose pretty fast.

However.

Penn delivers in this turgid and melodramatic telling of First Responders. In this instance his bruised and battered visage works to his advantage. It also helps that he is not the hero.

The story

Ollie Cross is the new kid on the block. His foray into the world of paramedics is fraught with uncertainty. Cross has no idea who to trust and he falls afoul of his first partner; LaFontaine. He is then paired with career burnout Rut (Gene Rutkovsky) who shows Cross the ropes.

The streets of NYC, AKA Asphalt City have never looked so grim.

The main cast

Tye Sheridan is Ollie Cross. Rookie and would be doctor.

Michael Pitt is Lafontaine. Easily the worst partner you could draw for a shift.

Sean Penn is Rut. A grizzled veteran who lived through the trauma that was 9/11.

Cast Honourable Mentions

Mike Tyson is Chief Burroughs. He acquitted himself well here. He has a few more lines than The Hangover and he delivers them well.

Gbenga Akinnagbe is Verdis. He has a bit more than Tyson to do here.

Kali Reis is Nia Brown, mother of the baby Rut deals with.

Katherine Waterston is Nancy, Rut’s last ex-wife.

Raquel Nave is Clara. She is Cross’s refuge, sex partner and possible girlfriend.

Problems

There was entirely too much sex and nudity with no clear context. Clara and Ollie shag a number of times and apart from the camera leering at the two, there is no emotion. It is skin on skin sex, no intimacy at all. It was, in my own humble opinion, unnecessary.

*It can be seen as a build up to a scene later in the film, but it could have been done better. Director Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire is French and this could explain a lot. French films indulge heavily in sex. It appears to be a prerequisite of sorts.*

Rut’s meltdown is signposted almost from the moment we meet him.

Asphalt City

The city is full of unpleasant characters. This may well have been the experience of author Shannon Burke. He wrote the book. *Titled: Black Flies; the story is the result of his shocking entrance into the First Responder world.*

Burke did this job for five years. He no doubt met his fair share of Ruts and Lafontaines. His experiences, that turned into the book this film was based on, must have been mind blowing.

I was quite ready to dislike the film. It has annoying religious overtures: Ollie Cross? Our “cross to bear?”The lad’s affinity with St Michael and the juxtaposition of the film’s reliance upon Ollie to provide the soul to the story all grate.

But.

I could not stop watching. Anyone who has cleared up the blood after a fight or suicide attempt will find the whole thing compelling. It may rely, to an extent, on tropes, but it does work.

Behind the scenes

The lighting is dark and gritty. Even the daylight scenes are grit laden. The flashing strobes at night and the dark edges of each scene work to the film’s advantage. Penn brings much to his role as the paramedic burnout. He impresses, but as I said at the beginning: I’m never going to be a fan.

The verdict

Asphalt City is a solid 3.5 drama. It is streaming on Hulu. Check it out and see what you think.

The trailer