Premium Rush
Short description
Premium Rush follows Wilee, a New York City bicycle messenger who rides a fixed-gear bike with no brakes through Manhattan traffic. A routine pickup at Columbia University turns into a life-or-death chase when a corrupt police officer named Bobby Monday decides he wants the envelope Wilee is carrying and pursues him across the city. The delivery must reach Chinatown within a tight window, and Wilee eventually opens the envelope, breaking a basic rule of his trade, after realizing that others besides the police are after it.
David Koepp directed and co-wrote the screenplay with John Kamps. The film is the fifth of the seven features Koepp has directed, arriving between Ghost Town and Mortdecai. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Wilee, with Michael Shannon as Monday, Dania Ramirez as Vanessa, Jamie Chung as Nima, Wolé Parks as Manny and Aasif Mandvi as Raj. Gavin Polone produced, and the production involved a large credited cast and crew.
Made for a budget of 35 million US dollars, the film took in about 31 million worldwide, so it did not recover its cost at the box office. On IMDb it holds 6.5 out of 10 from roughly 122,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.4 out of 10 from a much smaller base of 2,384 votes. A critics' rating of 6.3 out of 10 from 165 reviews places professional response close to the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- When the police officer on a bicycle crashes into the taxi door, it is noticeable that it has been specially modified for the stunt. The window frame has been removed to allow the stunt performer to fly through the door. Later, we see the regular door again when showing the bicycle stuck in the window frame.
- The film was shot concurrently with Triple Rush (2011) – a television documentary reality show about bicycle couriers in New York. Many stunt performers and characters from the show appeared in this film.
- Shortly after the first chase scene begins, Wiley passes the same gas station twice.
- The fact that Bobby Mandell uses the pseudonym Forrest J Ackerman is a tribute to the real Forrest J Ackerman, a well-known science fiction and horror fan (he coined the term “sci-fi” in 1959). He appeared in 48 films in minor roles, represented Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, and even Hugo Gernsback (after whom the Hugo Award is named), acting as their literary agent, and was widely known as a source of historical facts in Hollywood (due to his personal relationships with people like Vincent Price, Boris Karloff, and George Pal) and the science fiction fandom.
- Although some scenes take place inside Columbia University's law school, as stated in the film, most of the interior and street scenes were actually shot in Lerner Hall (the student center).
- During filming, Joseph Gordon-Levitt rode his bicycle into a taxi, crashing through the rear window and breaking it. He managed to cover his face, resulting in 31 stitches on his right arm. Despite the large amount of blood flowing down his arm, he thought it was “pretty awesome.” He took full responsibility, saying, “It was my fault, I was going too fast.” Footage of the aftermath of the crash is shown in the end credits.
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