Greetings again from the darkness. A terrific opening sequence finds Captain Jackie Velez (Lina Esco, “S.W.A.T.”) being ambushed by a couple of masked men. She manages to send a text as she returns fire. It’s her final text. This film from writer-director Joe Carnahan (THE GRAY, 2011; SMOKIN’ ACES, 2006) and co-writer Michael McGrale (“CSI: Miami”) was inspired by true events within the Miami Police Department.
With their captain’s brutal murder unsolved, the job must go on for the team that mourns her death and lives with the frustration that no task force has been assigned. Newly promoted Lieutenant Dane Dumars (Oscar winner Matt Damon) takes his team on an evening job to which he’s been alerted. Money is involved, as is a chance to get a lead on the captain’s killer. His team includes (Oscar winner) Ben Affleck, Teyana Taylor (ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER, 2025), Steven Yeun (“Beef”, NOPE, 2022), and Catalina Sandino Moreno (MARIA FULL OF GRACE, 2004). They are greeted at the stash house by Desi (Sasha Calle, ON SWIFT HORSES, 2024) who claims to know nothing about the money the team finds. It’s a lot of money. The kind of money that clearly has one source and that causes extreme stress within the team – and Desi.
Twists and turns and purposeful misdirection occur regularly throughout the film. We can’t always tell who is a good cop and who has ulterior motives. Did I mention that it’s a lot of money? At times it feels like Carnahan is trying to give us a story in the vein of the class THE DEPARTED (2006), what with all of the distrust, even amongst the cops. Kyle Chandler (ANNIVERSARY, 2025) plays a DEI Agent and Scott Adkins (JOHN WICK 4, 2023) plays a Federal Agent and Affleck’s brother. These characters add to the many complications and layers we wade through, including loyalties and motives.
It’s the complexity of the story and characters that work best here. Steven Yeun and Sasha Calle are especially strong in their roles, and it’s always a kick to see real life Boston buddies, Affleck and Damon, acting together. While the intrigue is a plus, the overwhelming gunfire and chase scenes towards the end actually take away from the story time fun – not enough to ruin it – just keep it from being what it could have been. The film includes my two favorite movie lines so far in 2026: “You look a little snitchy”, and “Can you sense my patience fraying?”. That’s a movie that deserves an audience.
Premieres on Netflix on January 16, 2026
Movie Reviews from the Dark 