The Gateway (I) (2021) User Reviews

Turn out to be a great movie.

[subxerogravity · 5/10 · 27 September 2021]

What the Getaway has going for it is that it was a drama with these little bits of action in it. That was perfect for people like me who may not have been up for the drama and the action was on point.

I saw Frank Grillo is in it and that was a bonus. Grillo seems to be becoming that type of star power that can show up in three or four scenes in a movie and legitimately sell the movie by putting him on the poster.

Olivia Munn is in it too. Looks like she's trying something different to widen her acting skills. She's in luck getting to share the screen with a season actor like Bruce Dern.

But the most interesting and fascinating cast member was Shea Whigham. This is a man who spent most of his career as a supporting actor now stepping up to the plate as lead actor, and doing a bang up job with it.

The drama is grimm but well played, and the action was fast and effective. I thought this movie was perfect.

It was a fair enough thriller...

[paul_haakonsen · 6/10 · 19 April 2022]

I had never heard about the 2021 thriller "The Gateway" from writers Alex Felix Bendaña, Andrew Levitas and Michele Civetta prior to sitting down and watching it here in 2022. All I knew about it was the fact that the movie Olivia Munn and Frank Grillo on the cast list.

The storyline was actually enjoyable. Sure, it wasn't the most innovative or creative of plot concepts, but the storyline made for good entertainment, and that is what matters to me when I sit down and watch a movie. So the writers definitely put together something that worked here in "The Gateway".

The narrative was adequately paced, some slow moments and some fast moments throughout the course of the movie, so it was a pretty nice enough movie experience.

"The Gateway" does have a good cast ensemble. I am not overly familiar with Shea Whigham, but he did perform quite well in this movie, despite of having just a single grimace to put on in every single scene. So there was lacking a bit of facial expressions of emotions and such, but it seemed okay to the character, given the backstory and addiction to alcohol. Olivia Munn was definitely nicely cast and performed quite well, and it was nice to see Bruce Dern in the movie. It was a shame that Frank Grillo only had a small role in the movie, as he could have spruced it up quite a lot. Zach Avery definitely put on a noteworthy performance here.

All in all then "The Gateway" was a good movie. I was definitely entertained by it.

My rating of director Michele Civetta's 2021 movie "The Gateway" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Shea Wigham is the star of this unfortunately forgettable film

[imdb-23821 · 4/10 · 3 September 2021]

Shea Wigham does a very good job as the weary social worker who really cares about the hard luck cases he counsels, mostly women with children who have a difficult time staying stable. He's a former boxer who lost his way in life, a father who abandoned him and his mother when he was younger and tried to channel his energy as a boxer robbed of a good chance at success into helping others.

Olivia Munn is the damsel in distress who can't help herself, especially when her husband (or ex) is released from jail and comes home... but still wants to pull of jobs with his old boss, Frank Grillo (who is rarely in the film.)

The problem with this film is that it doesn't really go anywhere much of the time. It's meant to be a long character study but even that isn't so revealing. He has a conflict with his old man and it's nothing we haven't seen a million times. Dad, I resent you, won't ever ask anything from you, etc. Etc.

Olivia Munn plays the most inept mother on the planet. Wigham tries to help her and keep her job, child, stability but she resents him. Olivia's ex comes back and danger and jealousy and suspicion is about.

This should have been a much, much better film. The acting is actually quite good - from all but Munn who just doesn't sell the role, perhaps it is the script which makes her into an inconsiderate blubberer all the time. It fails for the most part as a character study as there is only a limited look into what drives this man to be a social worker and a twist that happens is incredibly lame and feels like a forced plot device. And in the end, the movie goes where many predictable films go where the writer wants you to go "Oh.... wow man... that's deep. That's heavy and an emotional hit" and it really isn't. The very ending is also intended to be clever and i could see where it was going but, it too, was a little too unnatural in the attempt to be cute and clever.

This is not a terrible movie and Wigham is very good in his character. Like others say, unfortunately, it just doesn't really go anywhere and is just a simple story of the reformed loser who tries his hardest to go the extra mile to help out this one irritating woman and her son so they can stay together and protected from her dangerous ex. That's it.

Painfully boring

[tulsi-das-khan · 2/10 · 3 September 2021]

The makers took a great concept and butchered it by making the movie painfully slow with meaningless conversations, unnecessary buildups which lead to nothing toppled with poor cinematography. And the ending made no sense whatsoever.

The only saving grace of the movie is Olivia Munn. She's brilliant as the emotionally vulnerable and timid Dahlia.

Tough Social Worker

[jeroduptown · 5/10 · 11 November 2021]

When a social worker gets a little too wrapped up in his client and her dirtbag ex-con hubby comes home, things explode. It's got that made-for-tv feel.

Ridiculously and annoyingly bad.

[Top_Dawg_Critic · 4/10 · 4 September 2021]

I really feel sorry for Grillo, Munn and even Dern (who's been horrible in many other bad movies lately, but was actually good in this one) for having their names attached to this far-fetched ridiculous wannabe crime-drama-thriller pretentious mess.

Although Whigham's performance was decent, his character was cringeworthy, laughable, and annoyingly unconvincing. His James Dean wannabe look and demeanor did him zero justice, as did his unrealistic and ridiculous character's attempt to portray a social worker. The casting director needs to get fired for that call, as do the writers.

To make matters worse, there were actually three writers that came together to give us this nonsense; a (pulling out a mini-bottle out of thin-air) alcoholic chain-smoking drug-using gun-wielding emotional-baggage-carrying straight-faced low-monotonic dude-too-cool licensed city social worker? It may have worked as a comedic parody, but in this case, it was as I already mentioned, cringeworthy, laughable, and annoyingly unconvincing. Don't even get me started on the massive plot and technical issues.

The pacing was so slow with many unnecessary and long winded scenes, that the normally time-flies 91 min runtime felt like almost 3 hours. The screenplay was so dull, static and stale, I couldn't wait to get to the end. Aside from the last 10 mins of (somewhat) action, there were zero thrills in this thriller, and the drama was melodramatic in a soap-opera way.

And what was the point of the last 3+ mins of church choir singing? Then right after adding "In the United States, 250,000 children enter the foster care system every year", is an embarrassment to the foster system by portraying Whigham as a "licensed city social worker". What's the point to that message relating to this film? "Hopefully none of those 250,000 children will end up with such an unprofessional and unqualified social worker like Parker" lmao? Adding that statistic doesn't make the film any better, it makes it much worse.

One of those writers, Michele Civetta, also directed this mess. Using fish-eye lens and slow-mo scenes is something I'd expect to see in a 5th grade drama class production - from the 90's. His directing overall was amateurish at best, and he failed in directing his cast properly, with the exception of Grillo, who clearly carried his own weight perfectly without any need for cast direction. The score was ok, but the soundtrack was overbearing. I really can't think of anything redeeming about this film, it was such a disappointment.

It's a shame so much good talent was wasted in this nonsense. I'm giving this a very generous 4/10, more so out of pity for some of my favorite actors having this mess on their resume.

Not a gate to be closed

[bryangary65 · 7/10 · 19 January 2023]

Much better than current rating of 4.8

Okay not the best thriller you are ever likely to see, but on a cold winters night a decent way of passing an hour and a half without being bored

Shea Whigham has always been a good if slightly underrated actor and again in this movie is worth watching as he carries the story with a decent support act by Bruce Dern.

The plot has a bit of believable feel about it, with good action and sub storylines making you invested in the film. Also a nice atmospheric feel to it all and I would say overall there are plenty worse similar movies around, so give it a go.

A mediocre B Movie with an A list cast....Could've been a Contender....

[echoman-net · 5/10 · 4 September 2021]

B movie, mediocre even by network tv standards, with an A list group of actors, maybe drawn to this project by its truly noble attempt to protect children from the idiotic behavior of the adults around them.

But, ends up Jjust a predictable, excruciatingly slow paced film.....We see all the punches coming way too far in advance; like a spiraling, slow motion plane crash....

This movie is worth watching

[rrjones-59547 · 7/10 · 14 March 2023]

I greatly enjoyed it it has all a movie ask for. Look it's not a blockbuster buster or anything but Bruce dern delivers and my suggestion is watch it. Action suspense. Has meaning and depth to the movie. I am not quite sure why it has such a low rating but this movie is better than the ratings portray and I am quite upset that IMDb seems to have so many stuck up critics that expect so much from so little. I appreciate what the film has to offer and the mean behind it. The budget and the acting and actors. Frank grillo seems to be playing in so many movies not an A lister but he's a hell of a actor and is a great supporting actor. Olivia was great as well tell me if you agree watch it and let me know if you agree or disagree.

Olivia Munn's Career

[OzoneParkSteve · 1/10 · 5 September 2021]

I kind of feel bad for Olivia Munn, she made a few decent movies but the last few are real bombs.

Breakthrough to a gateway

[thegreatd-67074 · 8/10 · 19 October 2021]

I actually liked the film. The hot mom was one of the motivations along with the great plot and superb acting. The movie was fast paced and I followed the entire storyline which I could also relate to in many aspects of the film. I will be adding this to my movie collection!

Social work helper

[kosmasp · 6/10 · 25 March 2022]

If you are cynic, you may say: of course the social worker is going to help Olivia Munns character ... or show interest in her ... case. All jokes aside though, the movie walks that fine line quite well. Especially because the actors are doing their best to avoid as many cliches as possible. It does not work always, but it works enough for the movie to ... work.

That being said, the thriller aspect of it is quite predictable. But there is enough suspense and action to keep this fresh or at least exciting enough until the end. Nothing special, but nothing bad either ... somewhere in the middle.

Passable entertainment for the truly desperate

[cbenmedia · 5/10 · 23 August 2022]

Was it a good movie? No.

Was it a bad movie? Yes.

Did I run out of everything else to watch? Yup.

Did I already see it once and totally forgot? Seems likely.

I just watched it for the name brand actors hoping it wasn't terrible. I would normally can a movie like this right after the first fishbowl shot but I dragged my ass through it and was entertained by all the trashyness.

Not going to win any friends with this butt-salad.

Really bad film. Nonsense

[silverfoxcaribe · 2/10 · 10 May 2022]

It was a completely waste of time, the drama is ridiculous, boring and irrational.

I won't recommend this movie to anyone with a little bit of sense and respect for the cinema.

Ugh!! Disappointed

[pmcorso · 5/10 · 26 September 2021]

I only watched this movie because Frank Grillo appeared in it. Why did the picture look like it's b-rate and why would such a great actor take part in this?

It could have had more action due to the story line but it was slow and dragging by. I only finished it because I paid 5.99 to rent it on Prime.

I'm 🙏🏻 Cop shop will knock this out of the water.

Grim Crime Thriller with a Sturdy Cast

[zardoz-13 · 5/10 · 7 October 2021]

Indeed, there is no end of action in writer & director Michele Civetta's "The Gateway," a grimy little thriller about an ex-con Mike (Zach Avery of "The White Crow") released from prison and goes back to serve his crime boss Duke (Frank Grillo of "Warrior"), while making life miserable for his wife Dahlia (Olivia Munn of "Ride Along 2") and his young daughter Ashley (Taegen Burns of "Blue Ridge"). Actually, it is a seedy little drama about a variety of losers. At the center of this mayhem stands the social worker hero, Parker (Shea Whigham of "The Lincoln Lawyer"). Whigham delivers a bravura performance, and you won't take your eyes off him. He is genuinely concerned about the people that he is compelled to help. Primarily, an orphan raised within the system himself who was abandoned by his gifted musician father Marcus (Bruce Dern of "Nebraska"), Parker lives to serve others until an obnoxious co-worker goads him into punching him out. Parker's superior hates this turn of events as much as she abhors having to fire him. Meantime, after Mike is back home running his wife and daughter crazy, he goes after a big score that belongs to the cartel. Ultimately, he stashes three bricks of heroin in his daughter's bag. Of course, Mike lied to Ashley about the contents, and she was told it was a gift for her mother. The relationship between Dahlia and Mike is a battlefield. Dahlia is desperate for help, and she turns to Parker. Valiantly, Parker intervenes again, but he has lost his job and the authority that came with it. The ending is downbeat. If you're expecting Frank Grillo to be in the middle of this fracas, you are going to be disappointed. He is confined to the periphery. "The Gateway" qualifies as an atmospheric thriller that won't satisfy with its abrasive ending.

Run of the mill

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 23 June 2022]

Another one of these low budget, small scale thrillers that fails to do much with a half-hearted premise. This one has a lot of characters but is in the main based around a father being released from jail and bringing crime into the life of his wife and daughter. As usual for this genre, they amass some top actors in support including Keith David and Bruce Dern, and Shea Whigham is reliably great. But it's very hard to get too excited about something so run of the mill.

Another worst film! Full of boring conversation, and annoying overuse scene! Avoid at all cost!

[kwenchow · 1/10 · 3 September 2021]

This film start with a social worker "Parker" went into his subject house, and he calling with his phone scene! As turnout, this film is about Parker need to save his subject "Dahlia" from her criminal husband "Mike"! Entire film full of boring conversation, and annoying overuse scene! Such as, overuse of the walking scene, overuse of the searching scene, overuse of the staring scene, overuse of the song playing at the background scene, overuse of the arguing scene, overuse of the calling names scene, overuse of the flashbacks scene, overuse of the slow motion scene, overuse of the switching camera angle scene, overuse of the talking on the phone scene, overuse of the lying on the bed scene, overuse of the driving scene, overuse of the eating scene, overuse of the drinking scene, and overuse of the smoking scene! Make the film unwatchable! All the action scene have blood at certain point, but overall super shaky, messy, and occur in too short of time! Make the film frustrated to watch! At the end, Parker, and Mike both died! That's it! Wasting time to watch!

Loved the film

[fortyfour-52578 · 10/10 · 4 September 2021]

Good story with a great message. Start to finish action.

Hated it

[acctoot · 1/10 · 15 September 2021]

I dont understand that movie at all. The story makes no sense. The movie is too long . I dont like the actors and thats it.

Criminal Shows

[MarlyJeffreys-70192 · 10/10 · 8 September 2021]

This turned out to be an amazing movie and was not disappointed with the director's vision of what path he was taking the movie. I recommend you to watch on Prime Video.

MarlyJeffreys.

Great movie

[rachellefolk · 10/10 · 6 September 2021]

Under rated. 10/10.would recommend. This movie didn't get enough credit.

Pretty little film

[searchanddestroy-1 · 8/10 · 6 February 2022]

I am so glad to have caught this little drama, more than crime flick, where the lead character is so interesting, poignant, the kind of anti hero that I love. I don't know why but he reminds me Samuel le Bihan in TOTAL WESTERN. A man who suffered in his life and then tries to help the others, in such a way that you know it's a fight lost in advance for him. Gloomy and downbeat yes, but so more interesting than the usual Indie or Hollywood crap so predictable, using more than overused schemes and topics.

For those that love a 70's style slow burn

[alix-brown · 10/10 · 4 September 2021]

This movie is for you.

Don't expect an all action CGI Marvel movie.

For fans of Killing of a Chinese Bookie and Fat City.

Thoguht-provoking Slow Burn

[greyfeatherd · 5 September 2021]

This movie is not for fast furious adrenaline junkie short attention span twits.

Definitely a movie that entertains, but it is as much a serious drama as it is an action pic.

Perhaps more so.

Pretty disgusted by the low scores but mental midgets.

I was crying by the very end.

Don't do drugs!