What an interesting concept “Wheelman” is! Frank Grillo plays an unnamed getaway driver who appears in 99% of the scenes, and 99% of those scenes are shot inside a moving car.
Clearly, this was a passion project for Frank Grillo (dude from “Lamborghini: The Man Behind The Legend“) as he was also the producer. The opening scene is filmed entirely from the back seat of Frank’s stolen 2006 BMW 330i. The camera sits in the rear seat, central position, and even when the wheelman exists the car and has an interaction out on the street, the viewer sees this from the back seat. Kind of like a passenger or a fly on the wall; we’re along for the ride.
The conversation between the wheelman and the chop-shop that procured the E46 BMW 4-door for gives insight into the life of a getaway driver. Wheelman needed a fast car, strong enough to sustain damage and keep going, and required the steering wheel replaced to disable the airbags and allow quicker steering. He’s been hired for a bank robbery, so he’ll have two bad guys in the back seat, plus a trunk full of cash. Much like Jason Statham’s ‘Transporter’ this wheelman needs a full-size car that can really haul. Wheelman is pissed off that the trunk of the grey car is, in fact, red. He repeatedly complains that he demanded a non-descript car. And a black car with red trunk speeding away from a crime scene is a pretty vivid description.
While waiting outside the robbery, the wheelman gets a phone call from his handler who set up the job. He’s warned that the moment the robbers put the money in the trunk, he needs to boot it out of there, because they’re planning on killing him instead of sharing the loot. It’s a classic heist-gone-wrong movie in the vein of “Reservoir Dogs” or “Dog Day Afternoon“. From the moment the wheelman takes off with the money, it’s tense car chases as the bad guys try to recover their stolen money.
The gangsters whom the wheelman just ripped off have found out where he lives, and are going to kidnap his teenage daughter Katie (played by Caitlin Carmichael) to use as a bargaining chip. Wheelman calls his 15-year-old and demands she take the keys to his vintage 1984 Porsche 911 Carrera and burn rubber. Father and daughter on the run in a classic car; not something you see every day!
Sure, there’s some plot holes in the movie, but it seems like those occurred during editing. Scenes removed that mess with continuity but help with pacing. This was just a Netflix flick and not some big Hollywood release. But the character of the wheelman is fully fleshed out. He’s a guy who’s done wrong, paid the price, and is just trying to keep his head above water and provide for his family the only way he knows how.
The actin scenes are great as the camera switches from inside the car to the rear fender then to the roof. The sense of speed and danger are intense, but you’ll cringe when the 15-year-old daughter drives the Porsche through a parking garage! A fun and exciting popcorn movie.