Director, John Hillcoat has been stepping up his impressive efforts in film in the last few years with the likes of The Road in 2009 and then Lawless in 2012, and his latest outing, Triple 9, looks like it’s going to be yet another success. Making the transition from music videos to the big screen isn’t an easy bridge to cross, but Hillcoat looks like he might have cracked it, and if the trailer below is anything to go by it looks like he’s going from strength to strength.
It’s got an ensemble cast that includes Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs), Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) and Chewetel Ejiofor (Doctor Strange) and a stand-out story that features crooked cops, a big money heist and the Russian mafia. However, a debut script is also going to be risky business, so there’s a certain amount of pressure on newcomer writer, Matt Cook, who’s crafted the story back in 2010.
Release date
Triple 9 will be arriving on the big screen in February 2016 with the UK release date on the 19th, following its arrival in the US on the 16th. It’ll only be available in 2D and will be going up against the likes of Bone Tomahawk, The Finest Hours and How To Be Single on the same weekend in the UK.
Story
A group of criminals, along with their bent copper associates, find themselves being blackmailed by the might of the Russian mob. Their plan to get out of the situation is to pull of a massive heist using the distraction of a police officer killing to keep the rest of the police force busy while they complete the job.
However, things don’t quite work as well as they’d initially set out and while they complete the heist, the rooky cop they’d planned to kill ends up surviving because of a lack of conviction to murder one of their own. Things get even more complex when their target sets out to bust them following their failed attempt at homicide.
Cast
Kate Winslet, Aaron Paul and Chewetel Ejiofor are joined by yet more big names in the cast, including Anthony Mackie (Captain America: Civil War), Woody Harrelson (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part II), Gal Gadot (Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn Of Justice) and Michael K. Williams (Assassin’s Creed). Casey Affleck (Interstellar) plays the rooky cop, Chris Allen, and Teresa Palmer (Point Break (2016)) stars as his wife, Michelle.
Production
With John Hillcoat in the director’s chair, Matt Cook’s big screen release debut has got a good amount of recent proven success behind it. Keith Redmon, Bard Dorros, Marc Butan, Anthony Katagas, Christopher Woodrow and John Hillcoat produced the film.
First impressions
With a highly tipped script, good director and impressive cast list, we’re expecting good things from Triple 9. The trailer looks strong, especially on a cinema screen while it’s been doing the rounds in pre-film ads. Kate Winslet is a complete transformation as Irina Vlaslov, the head of the Russian mafia, and there’s bound to be a few more bolts from the blue before the end of the heist thriller.
