Jeremy Saulnier wrote and directed this tense little thriller that retreads familiar territory, but does it in a very entertaining way.

Terry Richmond (Aaron Pierre) has cashed out of his job and heading to a small-town to bail out his cousin, and then buy a truck so the pair of them can start their own business.

Biking into town, he immediately runs afoul of the local police force which in a corrupt move helps itself to his thirty thousand dollars and tells him to beat it. Unfortunately, Terry is on a ticking clock to pay off the bail for his cousin, and the police, led by Sandy Burnne (Don Johnson) are trying to drive him out of town.

What the police don’t know is that Terry was a Marine. The other thing they don’t know is that he’s getting help from a young woman working to become a lawyer, Summer McBride (AnnaSophia Robb).

Terry slowly learns what the police department is up to, and is ready to tear it all down before he and his yet-to-be-released cousin start their new venture together.

There are some tensely crafted sequences and Pierre and Johnson going toe-to-toe is something to see, two powerhouses revving their engines fills the scene with all manner of energy and threat.

It’s not quite the story of Rambo, vet comes into town and runs afoul of the local PD, but there are enough similarities to draw comparisons, and the action beats, when they hit, tend to be pretty solid. That final action sequence in front of the station is very well planned and orchestrated.

Johnson is chilling as the film’s villain, and it’s believable every step of the way. And one of his officers is played by David Denman, known for his work on The Office, and he comes across just as tough and villainous as Johnson’s Burnne.

It took me a while to get around to watching this. I know a few people who really dug it, and others who hemmed and hawed on it. Personally, I quite enjoyed it, and loved watching Terry take the baddies down.

And honestly, I should have known I’d enjoy it, because I enjoyed Saulnier’s Green Room. I guess that means I may have to check out other films he’s written and directed. I’ve enjoyed the performances he’s gotten out of Johnson, Patrick Stewart, and the other actors he’s worked with. I shall eagerly look forward to his next project.

He definitely deals with themes of the outsider coming in and upending things, let’s see if that carries through his other films. It definitely plays out here and in Green Room.