The Last Days of American Crime

It’s filled with plot points that feel ripped from today’s headlines — law enforcement distrust and upheaval, eroding public trust of authorities, technological overreach driven by partisan ideologies, and corporate greed fueling economic corruption.

However, any such ambition far outweighs the execution of The Last Days of American Crime, a lumbering high-concept heist thriller with a science-fiction twist that plays like a silly spinoff of the Purge franchise.

The dystopian concept is set in the near future, in the final days before the U.S. government launches a controversial high-tech initiative meant to curb rampant crime and promote peace. It involves a broadcast signal and an implanted chip that would render it psychologically impossible for people to commit illegal acts, and thereby eliminate the need for local policing.

That leaves Graham (Edgar Ramirez) with only a few days to execute a final act of vigilante justice. His elaborate plan to avenge his brother’s death involves teaming up with a loose cannon swindler (Michael Pitt) and his hacker fiancée (Anna Brewster) for a vault robbery and subsequent escape across the Canadian border before the ticking clock makes their stolen cash worthless.

The film establishes a harrowing testosterone-fueled urban landscape, which feels like a waste when it settles for standard-issue criminal brooding and macho posturing, and for a handful of stylish action sequences staged by French director Olivier Megaton (Colombiana).

Meanwhile, the screenplay by Karl Gajdusek (Oblivion) — adapted from a graphic novel — takes itself way too seriously while trudging through familiar themes of revenge and dishonor among thieves. It lacks depth in examining the sociopolitical subtext, such as a heightened awareness of police strategies and tactics that could have been timely and relevant.

Even the most hardened political cynic won’t buy the premise, and the film’s exploration of the ethical ramifications feels half-hearted. By lacking the consistent suspense to match its desired high stakes, the film becomes bloated despite Pitt’s freewheeling charisma.

In communicating its sociological perspective, The Last Days of American Crime is more pretentious than profound. As the monotonous narration intones: “Sometimes you get to see the bullet with your name on it. Sometimes everything is just bullshit.” That sums it up perfectly.

Not rated, 148 minutes.