RELAY – Review

Ah, now here’s a real “under the radar” gem. Usually, the quirky modern-day ‘B” pictures are dropped into the multiplex in late Winter or mid-Fall. So, we’re almost past the Summer blockbuster season, the studio “wise men” (two words not often next to each other) are arriving well in advance of the December holidays with a gift for us. This one’s full of razzle-dazzle tech twists and intricate machinations, mixing in elements of crowd pleasers like THE EQLUAIZER (movie series and TV shows), THE STING, THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR, with a sprinkling from the IMF team for a spicy kick. There are no big action set pieces, but there is plenty of tension when you dive into the wild world of RELAY.

Much as with a Bond flick or Indiana Jones, we’re dropped into the conclusion of a recent “operation” involving the lead character in the film’s opening moments. It seems that everything’s gone according to plan as he observes a rich CEO getting his “just desserts” while his former employee vanishes into the night. We’re then whisked away to the start of another case. A jittery young woman cautiously enters the towering home of an NYC law firm. Sarah Grant (Lily James) was a top researcher/scientist at a major “bio-agricultural” company. She sounded the alarm about a new “insect-resistant” wheat that has the possibility of dangerous, even deadly side effects. The company fired her and insisted she turn over all the research. Sarah left with the files, but is having “second thoughts”. She’s being harassed and threatened, spurring a desire to return the docs rather than “blow the whistle”. Now she fears that her old bosses will “tie up loose ends”.The lawyer who hears her declines to take her as a client. Instead, he scribbles down the number of a person who acts as an “intermediary” to broker the “info exchange”. When she calls the number, she speaks to a rep at the Interstate Relay Service, a company that translates phone calls for the hearing impaired. The messages are not recorded, nor are they kept on file. Typing in at another location is the “barterer,” who we later learn is named Ash (Riz Ahmed). They establish an ID “passcode phrase” (“Cash or credit?” “Check”) and he gives her strict instructions (do it right or I’ll walk away) on how to get the files to him, along with payment, and who to contact at her old job. He keeps a copy of the files forever in a secret safe and makes copies to send to the feds and media in case the company goes after her. But first, she’s got to move to a much safer place, namely an incredibly secure high-rise apartment building. Somehow her move leaks out, and a dark van is parked across the street. Inside is a well-armed “cleaner squad” headed by a man going by “Dawson” (Sam Worthington), who gets her client’s Relay calls from Ash. Will things go according to his elaborate plan? And what happens when the exchanges between Ash and Saeah take a more intimate turn?

In referring to this as a modern “B” movie, I didn’t wish to imply that the stellar cast is anything other than “A+”, particularly the two main leads. First, there is the interesting and intense Ahmed, who has been so great in supporting roles (NIGHTCRAWLER) and terrific as the main focus (acting students will study his work in SOUND OF METAL). For a moment, I thought he was following up on that film due to Ash’s use of the relay service, but it’s a way to avoid making a personal connection. Through those immersive dark eyes will look into the soul of an emotionally wounded, haunted man who must stay in control at all times. This quality doesn’t help him away from work as he sits silently at AA meetings. Ahmed wants to become invisible as he flits from one shadow to the next. But then someone flips the light switch, and we see his defensive cocoon slowly begin to crack. Taking a hammer to it is the ethereal charisma of Ms. James, who lets us see, in her vocal delivery and body language, Sarah go from vulnerable victim to staunch champion of her own destiny. She’s overwhelmed by dealing with the rapid, specific details from Ash, though soon she’s bobbing and weaving like a trenchcoated spy. Their engaging chemistry has us rooting for them to connect beyond the “case”. That’s complicated due to the dead-eyed killers headed by the gravel-voiced Worthington. Every line is spat out like venom, though we can get a glimmer of his reserved respect for his worthy opponent’s intellect. However, he lets us know that he’ll bash in that skull housing that brain, if he gets a chance. I should mention his also intimidating “second-in-command” Rosetti played by the captivating Willa Fitzgerald (who burnt up the screen last year in the fantastic STRANGE DARLING), who is both slinky and sinister as she pursues both Sarah and Ash.

As for the filmmaker who keeps “all the plates spinning”, here’s a big “Welcome back to the big screen” for David Mackenzie, whose last theatrical feature (aside from the Netflix showcase OUTLAW KING) was another engaging thriller, 2016’s HELL OR HIGH WATER. Working from an endlessly clever script from Justin Piasecki (no surprise that it was on the 2019 “Blacklist” of most-liked unproduced screenplays), Mackenzie almost turns the Big Apple into another character, as every street lamp or crowded walkway could lead to a fatal showdown. We’re guided to familiar locales made mysterious with bystanders giving the “stink eye” before possibly lashing out at Sarah or Ash, or maybe walking past. And even though they’re kept apart, Mackenzie and Piasecki convey the longing and yearning for contact that’s denied. Somehow, they make the relay service jargon somewhat “steamy” (at the end of every reply, rather than “stop” in telegrams, they say “go ahead”). I can’t give away too many details of Ash’s “playbook”, I will say that he uses state-of-the-art tech (lots of “burner phones” while making considerable use of the much maligned under-appreciated USPS. Yes, I’m talking about the post office, as Ash gets their tracking numbers, while dropping some unique postal trivia (when this film was shot, there were active post office service centers inside the gate area of a few major airports). As I mentioned, there aren’t elaborate stunt sequences, but many of the near-misses and “drops” will have you on the edge of your seat. That’s before you fall off of it during the stunning, whiplash-inducing finale reveal. There’s been little fanfare about this engaging entertainment (so many talk shows are taking early Labor Day breaks), so I hope that word will spread on this original film that takes its inspiration from so many classic thrillers (could Ash be a 21st-century spin on the Scarlet Pimpernel). Moviegoers will be well rewarded for their effort (it may be tough to locate at the multiplex) and time (clocking in at under two hours) with the cinematic and storytelling delights of RELAY.

3.5 Out of 4

RELAY is now playing in select theatres