I’ve seen a few reviews where I felt that Triple 9 was somewhat spoilt. After seeing the film, I can say that most of these only spoil what you expect anyway, and as such will do my best not to spoil any more than that.

So Triple 9 then, the cops and robbers story of a crew filled with corrupt cops under the thumb of the Russian mob, with more cops on their tail. The instant feel you get from the posters is Heat, something of the granddaddy of cops and robbers films. I really wanted to enjoy Triple 9, given the superb cast and feel. That does strongly imply that I didn’t, but to be honest, the film is, in a word, decent.

What becomes obvious is that there’s more to the film than the expected beats; the opening heist and the titular triple 9 heist are expected, with some setup in between. There is a huge amount more to the film, but this isn’t necessarily a good thing.

First off, T9 is an ensemble film, it tries to throw all its characters in and develop them, but for the most part it misses, with a few gems. The problem is that there are just too many people to care, you’re supposed to care about Chiwetel Ejiofor’s character Michael, largely based on the fact that he has a kid, the same goes for Chris, young Affleck’s character. It just feels like architypes than fully fleshed out characters, and you could just say “the one with the” etc. by the end (no spoilers here)

There are some great bits, Kate Winslet blazes through every scene she’s in, as Irina, head of the Russian-Jewish mafia. This could be considered her post-achievement film, like Julianne Moore last year with Seventh Son, but she genuinely is great. The rest of the cast are good, but standard. Aaron Paul is Aaron Paul, Chiwetel is Chiwetel, this could be the definitive Woody Harrelson performance by Woody Harrelson. Norman Reedus stands out as well, but only as a good performance compared the mediocrity of the rest.

All the action scenes are great, and that does mean something. There are three main action scenes, two of which did actually have me biting my nails. It’s not quite Sicario, or Heat for that matter, but it is great in these moments. The problem is the rest just drags out to get to these bits. There are these roundabout narratives that tie together in the end, just each one takes too long to get through, and could be breezed through, and with more punch. I must also say that the shocking bits are genuinely shocking. It’s not the king of originality but director John Hillcoat does manage to escalate some moments, and give it some much needed vigour.

The styling is great. It’s sort of cold and grimy, but at the same time energetic in its colour. It’s hard to describe, but the general beats feel familiar. As an homage to great cops and robbers it works, not so much as an original piece.

Though there is a lot to like, Triple 9 is only peppered with great moments amongst a pretty dull beef casserole. For some great action, and enough decency to pull through the rest, triple 9 will be remembered for its highs, but ultimately forgotten as a whole