Relay (M) film review

Relay (M) film review

In New York City, Ash (Riz Ahmed) anonymously brokers a payoff on behalf of his client. After handing over incriminating documents to his former CEO, Ash’s client walks free to begin a new life. Soon, Sarah Grant (Lily James) meets with an attorney to arrange a return of stolen, incriminating documents and to ensure her safety, where the attorney refers her to an informal contact. From the director of the excellent Hell or Highwater (2016) comes…

‘Relay’ Non-Spoiler Review – An Intriguing Thriller Before A Ridiculous Climax

In cinema, it’s an unspoken rule that the climax (referred to as “the final act” for many people who view movies as theater plays, even though it doesn’t serve the medium) can make or break your movie. In the case of producer David Mackenzie (Under the Banner of Heaven) and Justin Piasecki’s Relay, it not only breaks it, but completely tarnishes what was otherwise an efficiently crafted and controlled thriller that, while not reinventing the whe…

Riz Ahmed rises to the occasion in ‘Relay’

Riz Ahmed in “Relay.” MUST CREDIT: Heidi Hartwig/Bleecker Street Until it goes kerblooey in the last 15 minutes, “Relay” is the very model of a modern genre thriller: Taut, tight, squeezing the maximum of suspense and character detail from the minimum of gestures. No surprise, it’s from Scottish director David Mackenzie, whose filmography is one lean near-masterpiece after another, with the terrific 2016 neo-Western crime drama “Hell or High Wat…