This is Mexico's submission for the 2016 Oscars, and it's a semi-kinetic B-movie with good acting but no story. A G-man (Tim Roth) on the trail of teenage gunrunners gets himself kidnapped by one of the Latino teens, who doesn't really know what to do with his likable victim. It all ends in violence although director Gabriel Ripstein adds an amusing coda to keep it light. With minimal character development and mostly unpleasant characters, 600 MILES acts like its plot twists are tremendous.... they are as diving behemoths with the equivalent crushing effect, rendering the movie quite boring. Further proof of bore city: Endless tight shots of people driving and standing, or just staring into space. A B movie masquerading as artistic vanity is a waste of effort. Ripstein, who also co- produced, edited among other things, could have gained more market value for his film by just doing it as a straightforward B-movie. At least then we could revel in expanded villain roles. The villains here are boring, too. Not Oscar worthy.
Plot summary
Arnulfo Rubio smuggles weapons from Arizona to Mexico for a drug cartel, but he is being investigated by agent Harris. When agent Harris blows his covers, he and Arnulfo end up in a journey where he will be the hostage of this young criminal.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
January 08, 2024 at 12:45 PM
Director
Movie Reviews
Nicely done but boring
Kept At A Distance
Laid back approach to exciting drama that gets where it's going to very slowly and quietly. For the most part though the director keeps us distant from the characters and the action. Unfortunately this limits our involvement.
Nice modern day western vibe to it.
600 miles starts off with a very Intriguing look into America's gun control policy.
I learned a lot about how and where I can purchase a firearm. Some instances I sincerely hope are being over exaggerated by the film.
The movie really comes to life the moment Tim Roth's character comes into it. It's a slow paced drama, that feeds on his low key and very effective performance, as an ATF officer, very imperfect in doing a very dangerous job.
His relationship with Arnulfo, a weapons smuggler who kidnaps him was fantastic. Every thing was so subtle as these guys barely said but a few words to each other, yet you could see the connection coming between them. Just amazing and effective filmmaking.
I also like how the movie was dubbed in both Spanish and English. Not that you really needed dialog to understand the movie.
It was a small movie that was able to tap into the human emotion and really suck you in with the great performances and excellent film structure.