Premium Rush
User Score
6.8 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 136 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 107 out of 136
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 136
  3. Negative: 12 out of 136

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  1. Bairdo
    Mar 10, 2013
    2
    Awful movie. Very silly. It has the feel of a low-budget, one hour teen drama. It's such a piece of garbage that it should be crumpled up and covered in the old food you threw in the trash. I paid six bucks to rent this turd and I'm not even gonna finish it. I should have flushed that six bucks down the toilet. It would have been far more entertaining. I feel great after dumping on this movie. Premium Crap.… Expand
  2. tykittaa
    Aug 29, 2012
    3
    Whenever Michael Shannon is on screen, this movie is an absolute blast to watch. Unfortunately, when he's not, it's borderline unwatchable. If this movie had been filmed in the '90s, you can be certain the main character would be using the word "radical" every other sentence. It's THAT kind of film.
  3. MikefromAngus
    Jan 18, 2013
    0
    As a mountain biker and a person who loves physics! this movie stinks! Also the story is way over the top, not believable. Its one of the those movies, that shouldnt have been made!
  4. seancriswell
    Aug 25, 2012
    4
    About the best thing that can be said about this movie is that Gordon-Levitt and Shannon do what they are asked to do with the characters they are given. The movie has very little plot, and what plot there is we don't have any investment in. The bike riding seems cool, but only for a minute, better to search for bike messengers on you tube if that's what your coming to the film for. Overall a highly forgettable thriller.… Expand
  5. Spangle
    Dec 28, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. It starts off extremely slowly. However, once they get into the envelope and what is in it and the chase with the cop gets going, it picks up quickly. However, since the beginning almost put me to sleep, the movie wound up being around mediocre to average. If the film was just the second half, it would've been a fantastic movie.… Expand
  6. dinojay2
    Aug 25, 2012
    1
    I wasn't expecting heavy dramatic turns but this thing was far worse than I expected. The dialogue was simply awful. And I found myself laughing at things that weren't supposed to be funny which is obviously never a good sign.
  7. savoy16
    Aug 31, 2012
    4
    If you really like to watch chase scenes, on bicycles, then this movie is for you. I enjoyed the flashback-back and forth timeline presentation and some of the stunts where cool but it got old quick. I think it got lost between trying to be clever and action backed. In the end I was disappointed.
  8. reelmusik
    Sep 2, 2012
    4
    The film was overall decent. While it did have a very big cool factor, the plot was a bit non-existent, the writing was not very memorable, but the structure was at least interesting. While some people loved Michael Shannon's acting in this film, I could not help but be pulled from the film with every word he uttered. His voice grated on me like the asphalt in a bad bike crash. The film had good sequences, but I hardly remember what happened and I only saw it about three hours ago. I didn't expect much from this film, and I got what I expected.… Expand
  9. jcomedynow
    Sep 4, 2012
    1
    No plot. Completely flat characters. Villain is not redeeming in any way. Damsel in distress also not very likable. Incredibly serious things happen with no consequences. Really dumb decisions made by characters for the purpose of making the movie have anything happen at all. Majority of humor involves a Chinese phonebook and a very muscular black man. Absolutely terrible conclusion. Only thing to watch in this movie is the bike chase sequences and they're not great.… Expand
  10. BrianMcCritic
    Mar 11, 2013
    4
    This movie is a big disappointment. My biggest problem with this film is the script stinks and Jamie Chung's accent is cringe worthy. The bike scenes are kind of cool and JGL is good, but it's not enough to save this film.
  11. sil3nt_nick
    Mar 24, 2013
    3
    Plot is nowhere near as interesting or entertaining as it should be.
  12. G_Thomas_Boston
    Apr 24, 2013
    4
    Be careful on the streets of New York. You'll find mayhem, close-calls, accidents, rude behavior, violence, and danger; and that's just from the bicycle messengers.

    Premium Rush is the story of one of those messengers (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who must make an important and urgent delivery through Manhattan rush-hour traffic. Gordon-Levitt's character, Wilee, is such a maniac tha    t he rides a bike without brakes, derailleur gears or de rigueur rails.

    Joining Wilee on this thrill ride are Manny (Wolé Parks) and Vanessa (Dania Ramirez). I don't know if this film is supposed to make us feel some sympathy for the plight of the downtrodden bicycle messenger, but I personally was rooting for the bad cop (Michael Shannon) to haul their hazardous hineys to the hoosegow for being the dangerous road jerks that they are.

    The acting is uneven at best. Ramirez must have gone to the Scowling-Is-Acting School for Young Thespians. Not that she can't make a career out of a scowl. Bruce Willis has been a show-biz success for nearly 30 years with no discernible asset other than a smirk. Shannon's acting isn't much better. I've enjoyed his previous work in Boardwalk Empire and the excellent Before the Devil Knows You're Dead. Here, however, he vacillates between a tough-as-nails Cagney-like bad guy to an exasperated high-pitched whining comic-relief character reminiscent of Curly Howard.

    Most of the film's 90 minutes, is spent wheeling on bicycles through traffic. I found it rather tiresome (ha ha! get it? tiresome... tire... you know... bicycle... forget it).

    If it's bicycles and a thrilling chase that you have a craving for, watch two movies Breaking Away and Bullitt. You'll get the fix you need and see two infinitely better films in the process.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
66 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 36 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 36
  3. Negative: 2 out of 36
  1. Empire
    Reviewed by: Olly Richards
    Sep 10, 2012
    60
    A movie that while thin and silly, moves with such joyous speed that you almost want to throw your arms in the air and scream.
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  2. Total Film
    Reviewed by: Kevin Harley
    Sep 1, 2012
    60
    It's definitely the 'other' Gordon-Levitt film out this month, but this silly cycler whizzes by amiably. Star charm helps: JGL's enjoyment in his job adds welcome levels of Levitt-y.
    Read full review
  3. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Nick Pinkerton
    Aug 27, 2012
    80
    There is a lot of silly bike-is-life philosophy, including Wilee's personal credo of "Fixed gear, steel frame, no brakes," none of which I can speak to because I don't care a tinker's damn about bikes, but I do have an abiding fondness for compact and coherent action movies, and this is surely one.
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