Paper Tiger, 2026.
Directed by James Gray
Starring Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, Miles Teller, Gavin Goudey, Roman Engel, Cindy Katz, Yavor Vesselinov, and Victor Ptak.
SYNOPSIS:
Two brothers pursue the American Dream but get entangled in a dangerous Russian mafia scheme that terrorizes their family, testing their bond as betrayal becomes possible.
James Gray has had an eclectic career from the historical exploration drama The Lost City of Z to sci-fi Ad Astra. If there’s one genre he’s perhaps felt most at home with it’s crime, putting his distinct spin on the genre with the likes of We Own The Night, Little Odessa and The Yards. After dabbling in other styles, he returns to his roots and the familiar setting of New York with Paper Tiger, in some ways an extension of themes covered in Armageddon Time, taking place in the summer of 1986.
Miles Teller and Adam Driver are brothers Irwin and Gary Pearl, Irwin an engineer and Gary formerly a cop who left the force to make his fortune and invites Irwin to help him with a lucrative consultancy job. The job involves the Russians and what seems like a swell deal quickly takes a sideways turn, putting Irwin and his children at particular risk.
What could quickly descend into an all-out brawl on the streets of 80s New York is cleverly kept to string out the tension rather than constant violence. This makes the short, sharp bursts all the more effective when they do appear. There are a couple of terrifically staged sequences that really bristle with suspense.
Teller and Driver are both terrific leads, Irwin out of his depth and determined to protect his family but reliant on the support of Gary to put things right. Teller and Driver are dynamite together as the chalk and cheese siblings. Gary is committed to his brother but frustrated by the situation. It’s a different kind of performance from Driver, more charismatic and brooding, with plenty of emotional depth and an unpredictability at his core. The pair are supported by a firecracker turn from Scarlett Johansson, who lends the film its emotional heart and adds a heartbreaking subplot.
Paper Tiger is classic James Gray, returning to familiar territory with a tight thriller that has a central trio, firing on all cylinders and keeping this from feeling run-of-the-mill. The 80s setting benefits the story, the city is cracked and rough around the edges and Irwin and Gary seemingly without support in their dealings with the mob. It goes in some unexpected directions and cements Gray’s reputation as a crime director and one of the best at making films about New York.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Chris Connor
