THE STORY – Rory and Cobby are reluctant partners: a desperate father and an ex-con thrown together to rob a corrupt politician’s ill-gained earnings. But when the heist goes wrong, the two find themselves engulfed in a whirlwind of chaos, pursued not only by police but also by backward bureaucrats and vengeful crime bosses. Completely out of their depth, they convince Rory’s therapist to join their riotous getaway through the city, where they must put aside their differences and work together to evade capture — or worse.
THE CAST – Matt Damon, Casey Affleck, Hong Chau, Michael Stuhlbarg, Paul Walter Hauser, Ving Rhames, Alfred Molina, Toby Jones, Jack Harlow & Ron Perlman
THE TEAM – Doug Liman (Director), Chuck Maclean & Casey Affleck (Writers)
THE RUNNING TIME – 101 Minutes
Rory (Matt Damon) is at a crossroads in his life. In his mid-50s, broke, depressed, and with a busted marriage, he helplessly tells his therapist (Hong Chau), “I fucked things up.” He’s on the verge of possibly killing himself with very few options left open to him, so he turns to the only solution he feels he has: the opportunity to be a part of a heist that will set his life straight and redeem him for all of his faults in the eyes of his son. Naturally, things don’t go according to plan, as we’ve seen in many heist movies throughout cinematic history, and Rory’s path toward redemption will not be as clear-cut as he thought it would be. Under Matt Damon and Ben Affleck’s production company, Artists Equity, comes a surface-level entertaining but mostly forgettable Boston blue-collar crime comedy (equipped with Dunkin’ Donuts references), “The Instigators.” Directed by Doug Liman (“American Made,” “Edge Of Tomorrow” and most recently, “Road House“), the film provides everything you would expect from its premise but nothing more.
Rory is paired up with Cobby (Casey Affleck), a former convict who is now an alcoholic and has had previous dealings with the crime boss setting up the heist, Mr. Besegai (Michael Stuhlbarg). Rory needs exactly $32,480 and has no intention of hurting anyone as this is his first and what he believes will be his only job. Rory and Cobby are tasked with ripping off the party being held for the winner of the mayor’s office election (Ron Perlman plays the incumbent mayor), where they will get 10% of what they find. It’s supposed to be a piece of cake. A few minutes. In and out. Yes, they have guns, but no one is meant to get hurt. However, that’s not exactly how things go down as many witnesses see them; there is a shootout that leaves a bullet in Cobby’s shoulder, and someone is in the back of their stolen armored vehicle. Not to mention, there’s significantly less cash present than what was initially promised to them. Now, Cobby and Rory, two men who don’t know or like each other, are on the run with the cops in pursuit, Mr. Besegai looking to close loose ends through some hired muscle (Paul Walter Hauser), and Mayor Miccelli (Perlman) sending his own specialized cop, detective Frank Toomey (Ving Rhames), to retrieve a personal stolen heirloom. To make matters worse, Rory and Coddy end up taking Rory’s therapist, Dr. Donna Rivera (Chau), hostage in hopes of finding a way out of the mess they’ve found themselves in.
On paper, this has all the makings to be a fun studio crime-comedy filled with A-list talent and a plot that is comfortably familiar. The issue, though, is that’s all it is. Neither Damon nor Affleck turns in notable work; the story plays out exactly as you would expect, the jokes are never clever and lack punch, and the action scenes, though shot with a steady hand by Doug Liman, who is no stranger to this kind of filmmaking, never reaches a feeling of adrenaline-filled excitement. You would think the chemistry of the cast, as talented as they all individually are, would be enough to keep this heist picture from reaching the jail cell. Still, there is a continual mismatch of personalities and a lack of distinguishable banter to make it feel natural and funny.
Part of the problem is on the page; Cobby is meant to be the more animated character between him and the uptight but morally serious Rory. He needs his son to blow into his breathalyzer before he drives, he’s constantly searching for a drink, and he’s not opposed to having to resort to violence to get out of a sticky situation. But he also possesses a sluggish quality to his overall demeanor that is fitting for Affleck’s natural weariness but is not suitable for what this type of character should be, especially if he’s going to act opposite Damon’s more straightforward Damon playing Damon performance. So what do you get when you have two straight men acting opposite each other in what’s supposed to be part buddy crime flick? A disappointing lack of spark and creativity in the comedy.
Luckily, Hong Chau is the film’s saving grace as her hapless therapist gets caught between Rory and Cobby, resulting in the film’s best spouts of humor, even though the setup of a therapist still trying to guide her patient through car chases and gunfire is beyond ridiculous. Chau makes the most of it and has better chemistry with Damon and Affleck than they do with each other. All other supporting players show up and do their thing but never make much of an impression, with some underutilized to the point that you may be left questioning what they were even doing here to begin with (hello, Alfred Molina!).
Rory and Cobby may seem like they have a death wish with their actions, but when you have a therapist present during the most stressful point in your life who refuses to let you give up on yourself, I suppose anything is possible, right? And that’s another trap “The Instigators” finds itself in. For all the problems our lead characters face in their attempt to get away with the stolen money and their lives, the film wraps itself up in a manner that is too tidy and stretches plausibility. Not because the movie realistically presents itself. Make no mistake; this is a heightened Hollywood feature film meant to entertain first and foremost and not present anything even closely resembling the gritty real-life crime world of Boston (though Liman, to his credit, does shoot many of the car chases using practical vehicles on location). However, with so many side characters with their own motivations and moving pieces, “The Instigators” takes the easy way out rather than finding an ingenious route through its messiness, resulting in a predictable and safe ending that has to take its eye-rolling creative choices to the next level by including “Something In The Air” by Thunderclap Newman with the opening line “call out the instigators” playing as the film wraps itself up. Heist pictures in Hollywood are a dime a dozen, but with so much talent involved, “The Instigators” should have at least instigated a more memorable and amusing experience.