Director: Sacha Gervasi
Writer: Steven Knight, Sacha Gervasi (Screenplay) Sam Munson (Novel)
Starring: Ansel Elgort, Chloe Grace Moretz, David Strathairn, Catherine Keener, Terry Kinney, Cory Hardrict, Philip Ettinger
Plot: After his friend is murdered, a Washington, D.C. teenager undertakes his own investigation of the crime.
Runtime: 1 Hour 26 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Verdict: Nice Mystery
Story: November Criminals starts when one of Addison (Elgort) and Phoebe (Moretz) classmates gets gunned down in a café, the police put it down as a gang crime, something doesn’t add up to Addison though.
Addison starts his own investigation to try and solve the crime, believing he couldn’t have been in a gang, with his father Theo (Strathairn) letting him do his thing, Phoebe must be the voice of reason to put him back on the right path before he learns something he shouldn’t.
Thoughts on November Criminals
Characters – Addison is best friends with Phoebe, he has been struggling with his studies after his mother’s death and when one of his classmates is murdered, he wants answers that the police aren’t giving, leading him to dive into his personal life to search for the truth, partly with him spiralling out of control, while also proving to be determined to not have a second unanswered death in his family. Phoebe is the best friend of Addison, she is more popular in her school and is ready for the next step of her life, she will support Addison, only she does worry for him when he gets too involved in the investigation. Theo is Addison’s father that is trying to let him deal with what happened his own way with Fiona being Phoebe’s mother that gets worried about their friendship.
Performances – Ansel Elgort in the leading role continues to show why he is strong in leading role, we can see in his performance just how damaged he feels with his life. Chloe Grace Moretz is wonderful in the supporting role, with the rest of the cast doing a great job through it.
Story – The story here follows a high school student who does start to investigate a classmate’s murders in a way to deal with his own loss in life, however dangerous it could be for him. This does show that losing someone in their life can put focus on things they shouldn’t showing just how dangerous diving into a world you know nothing about. We get the look at relationship between the two, which isn’t as strong as it could be, but does how difficult a modern relationship just before college can be. The crime doesn’t seem like we get enough time with the crime side of the film, which is disappointing.
Crime/Mystery – The crime side of this film is focused on the seemingly random shooting, with the mystery showing us the truth behind the crime, that Addison wants to expose.
Settings – The film uses the settings to show how the city the characters are in, will have secrets they are not prepared for.
Scene of the Movie – The truth.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Just doesn’t feel like the police do something.
Final Thoughts – This is a crime mystery thriller that just doesn’t reach the top levels it could, as the investigation seems slow.
Overall: Simple Investigation.
