Motor City

TIFF REVIEW: BY DARREN ZAKUS

September 15, 2025

3.5 OUT OF 5 STARS

Motor City packs a wicked punch thanks to its expertly designed and savage fight sequences and rocking soundtrack that propel this action film from start to finish despite its absence of dialogue, providing a great starring vehicle for Alan Ritchson to continue cementing himself as one of the most charismatic and exciting action stars currently working today.

In the twenty-first century, it is not often that we get films without dialogue anymore, but everyone and a while one comes along. In creating this project, producer Greg Friedman wanted to create a universally shared experience for audiences and developed the concept of a largely dialogue-less action film where the action and actors body language told the story, and under the direction of Potsy Ponciroli, Motor City achieves exactly that. What Ponciroli delivers to viewers is nothing short of pure entertainment, unleashing relentless, energetic and brutal action set pieces led by an all star cast of Alan Ritchson, Ben Foster and Shailene Woodley, quickly dispensing with the need for dialogue to deliver a non-stop action experience for the big screen.

With less than ten lines of dialogue throughout the entire film, the story needs to be able to find other ways to be conveyed to the audience. From a narrative perspective, the plot follows a simplistic revenge crime thriller narrative which lends itself to straightforward storytelling full of betrayal, violence and mayhem that keeps the film moving at a lightning pace. It is a familiar enough story to audiences that does not require much explanation to keep them informed as to the direction and character motives, which allows the lack of dialogue to not hinder the storytelling. Yes, the pacing does slightly dip in the film’s middle act with a notable lack of violence compared to the film’s other two acts, despite an exceptional prison breakout sequence, but by the time the film enters its third and final act, the drama has reached Shakespearean levels of revenge as Ritchson’s John Miller goes on a rampage to get the justice he so long desires.

Instead, this allows other elements of the film to fill the void left by the absence of dialogue. The film has a massive soundtrack of music from the 1970s, with each needle drop helping to convey the emotions of the characters and the story, which would not have been possible without the help of Jack White getting the filmmaking team connected with each artist to pitch their vision for this film and the use of each song in it. Some of the songs were pre-determined before the film entered production and written directly into the script by writer Chad St. John, while others were tested by editor Joe Galdo while cutting the film to find the perfect song that fit each scene, with the use of Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” in John’s arrest scene being the standout needle drop of the entire film as it perfectly captures the wave of emotions of the betrayal faced by John. Being set in the 1970s, the seedier environment of the film helps to develop this 70s crime thriller, in addition to the general audience perception of this action subgenre which helps to fill out the story’s archetype and alleviate the need for dialogue.

With the cast not having dialogue to inform their performance, they rely on the physicality of their performances to develop their characters and convey emotion. Guided by the screenplay from St. John, the cast is given the boundaries for what needs to happen within each scene and are given the freedom to develop their characters through their body language, facial expressions and on screen demeanor, allowing their performances to create the heart of the soul of the film and dispense with the need for dialogue.

For Ritchson, he easily creates the brute strength force and deadly determination of John Miller through his hulking physical stature and silent intensity long before he starts throwing any punches. The action sequences allow Ritchson to excel, creating a domination and brutal presence on screen that captures the essence of the fight choreography, creating a hero that the audience can’t help but root for. Ben Foster, who is notably known for his villainous turns as he can create a true wickedness on screen, chews up every scene as Reynolds, creating one truly vile antagonist for Ritchson to square off against. Shailene Woodley stuns in the pivotal role of Sophia, the woman at the centre of the war between John and Reynolds, creating a strength, fight and captivating presence through her remarkable facial expressions and body language, marking the best performance from Woodley in years.

But, for films like Motor City, they live or die on their action sequences, and Motor City more than delivers the goods. Between its leading star Ritchson, who is no stranger to action heavy projects, and the film’s creative and stunt team, they have conjured up some exhilarating set pieces as the team purposefully used their never ending imagination to create the most jaw-dropping action sequences while pushing the boundaries of what could be done with their independent budget. The fight choreography is exceptional, helping to create intense fights on screen that are bloody, brutal, and exhilarating, ensuring that the audience will be left flinching in pain, most notably in the third act elevator fight which is not only the best fight scene of the film (only amplified by its one take nature), but one of the best fights of any film of this decade so far. Each set piece is filmed with long takes to highlight the staging of each fight and the talents of Ritchson and the stunt team, showcasing the film’s practical stunt work at every chance Ponciroli gets, aided by exceptional sound design that ensures that every hit, bone crunch and shot fired rings and hits the audience square on. Combined with the beast mode that the film’s story enters in the third act, Ponciroli delivers everything that hard core action fans could want from such a film but may leave the more casual viewer shocked by the brutality that unfolds on screen.

Featuring some of the meanest fight sequences captured on camera in recent years, aided with some truly inventive ideas that ensures these set pieces are equally as gory as they are entertaining, Motor City fires on all cylinders to create an exhilarating experience that does take its foot off the gas for a second. With a simplistic narrative that reaches Shakespearean levels of drama to instigate the set pieces, the absence of dialogue is not felt for a second as Motor City speeds along at a relentless pace as the great performances, sound design and expertly curated and synchronized soundtrack do the storytelling’s heavy lifting, resulting in a unique action film. With Alan Ritchson stunning in the lead role with a physically dominating performance that plays to his strengths as an action star, Motor City easily becomes a rip-roaring action experience that explodes across the screen and takes audiences on an unforgettable and exhilarating ride.