The Gateway (2021)
1h 31m | PG-13
A social worker assigned to the care of the daughter of a single mother intervenes when the dad returns from prison and lures them into a life of crime.
Director: Michele Civetta
Studio: Metalwork Pictures
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Video: 720p
Cast
Shea Whigham
as Parker
Olivia Munn
as Dahlia
Taryn Manning
as Corey
Frank Grillo
as Duke
Bruce Dern
as Marcus
Keith David
as Terry
Reviews
Really solid cast with good performances all around, but especially led by Shea Whigham who deserves more leading roles, and Bruce Dern doing more than just laying in a bed muttering some lines (see Once Upon a Time in Hollywood), plus a great 70s-era soundtrack used I suppose to give this a gritty crime-drama akin to that time frame (but taking place today). However, and acknowledging this is a slow burn, does take its dear time getting to the plot with a few dull moments here and there. In addition, when we get to the finale, doesn't quite fit together enough to make this very memorable. At the very least, I would say it's worth a rental, though any Frank Grillo fans should know he's only in it for maybe 5 minutes (and shares no scenes with Whigham), likely all of his scenes show in one day. He's not bad at all and has the gravitas to give an underwritten character some depth, just wish he had a larger role. I'm on the fence with my rating, but right now: **3.0/5**