Last Updated on August 2, 2021
PLOT: David (Bobby Soto) works for an imprisoned crime lord named Wizard. He and his partner, Creeper (Shia LaBeouf), are the neighborhood “tax collectors” as they get 30% of all drug earnings. But, their place in the underworld is threatened when one of Wizard’s rivals from Mexico shows up bent on taking over his turf by any means necessary.
REVIEW: David Ayer’s THE TAX COLLECTOR is a return to his roots after making two back-to-back (divisive but successful) tentpoles with SUICIDE SQUAD and BRIGHT. This is much more in line with something like STREET KINGS, in that it’s ultimately a silly gangland tale that lacks the soul of his lower-key films like HARSH TIMES, but manages to entertain.
Much has been made about the fact that Shia LaBeouf got his entire torso tattooed for the film, but, hilariously, Ayer keeps him clothed throughout. That’s right – you never actually get a look at all the ink he got for the role, except in one brief shirtless scene where, to be sure, the legit ink doesn’t add much. Tats or no tats, no one could ever say LaBeouf is prone to phoning it in, so he’s all-in as the ride or die “Creeper” (sporting two cauliflower ears that – hopefully – aren't the real thing). Presumably, a white guy raised among Latino gangs, the role isn’t “brownface” as has been assumed, and LaBeouf is compelling as the half-crazed gangland soldier, who even the hardest gangsters are afraid of due to his near-delight at killing. Yet, Creeper is ultimately one of the film’s heroes, with him a "ride or die" bestie with the real lead, Bobby Soto’s more soulful, composed gangster, David.
The premise isn’t half bad, and Soto (who’s good in another indie out earlier this year – THE QUARRY) is good in the lead. That said, Ayer’s film is two-dimensional. Running just over ninety minutes, you never really get time to invest in the hook of the film, which is that Soto’s character is a devoted family man by day, living a lavish lifestyle in an upscale L.A neighborhood thanks to the proceeds of his crimes, while at a moment’s notice he has to turn gangsta. This premise might have sustained a much more interesting movie, especially once it’s revealed that his wife (Cinthya Carmona) is in on the whole thing, working as his defacto book-keeper.
Instead, within a short amount of time David is thrown into conflict with a crazed gangster played by Jose "Conejo" Martin, who’s bent on taking over Wizard’s turf and wants David and Creeper on his side. Given how Conejo’s got an army of mercenaries at his disposal, you’d think David would throw in with him, but he’s torn by family loyalty, both to Wizard (his relationship to him is a last-min reveal but easy to predict) and his boss’ lieutenant, who happens to be his uncle (George Lopez in a solid, serious role). Blood over bullets!
From there, THE TAX COLLECTOR drops any pretense of this being a serious gangster tale, opting to revel in machismo and carnage, and for what it is it ain’t bad. Given that he’s working on a low budget this time, the film is packed with action, and while it’s easy to predict it’s a fun ride despite the movie already being reviled by critics.
The fact is, THE TAX COLLECTOR is a grade-B action flick. While I think many of us assumed Ayer was cooking up a serious gangster flick, especially when news dropped that LaBeouf was getting tattooed for the role, in the end, it’s an action programmer – not that there’s anything especially wrong with that. It’s a turn your brain off action flick that’s extremely familiar if you know the genre, but it’s well-executed and has two committed lead performances from Soto and LaBeouf, while Conejo is a memorable villain, even if his love of Santeria makes him feel like a baddie straight out of a nineties Steven Seagal flick. I had a good time with THE TAX COLLECTOR, and if you go in with the right mindset and happen to like this kind of thing, you likely will too.
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