--- title: "Motor City" year: 2026 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/motor-city" fi1m_id: "motor-city" imdb_id: "tt2012616" tmdb_id: 87513 wikidata_id: "Q118146294" fi1m_score: 68 critics_score: 73 critics_reviews: 9 published: "2026-09-23T13:55:10.074266+00:00" updated: "2026-09-23T13:55:41.606778+00:00" region: "CO" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Motor City (2026) Directed by Potsy Ponciroli · 1h 44m · Action, Thriller, Crime ## Identity Motor City - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/motor-city - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** motor-city - **IMDb ID:** tt2012616 - **TMDB ID:** 87513 - **Wikidata ID:** Q118146294 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2012616/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/87513, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q118146294 **Fi1m score: 68** · Critics 73 from 9 reviews *In a sentence:* Nobody says a word for 104 minutes and Fleetwood Mac does the talking > Potsy Ponciroli’s revenge thriller strips out the dialogue and lets the soundtrack carry it, and for an hour that is a good trick. The action is brutal and well staged; the story beneath it is thin, and the film loses its nerve at the end. ## Synopsis Detroit, the 1970s. John Miller (Alan Ritchson) builds cars by day and spends his nights with Sophia (Shailene Woodley), and the two of them are planning a life together, though nobody in this film says a word aloud. Reynolds (Ben Foster) runs the drugs in the city and has Lieutenant Savick (Pablo Schreiber) of the Detroit police on his payroll. He has seen Sophia and decided he wants her. A traffic stop, a bag that was not in the car when Miller got in, and Miller is in handcuffs and then in a cell, watching the woman he loves go on without him. Everything is carried by looks, gestures and a jukebox of 1970s records. ## Review Potsy Ponciroli has made a revenge thriller in which nobody speaks. Not a word, for 104 minutes: the script by Chad St. John gives its cast looks, gestures and a record player, and asks them to carry a story of love, betrayal and a shotgun through 1970s Detroit on those alone. *Motor City* is a decent, muscular B-picture with one good idea, and the idea holds for about an hour. After that the songs start doing the work the film should be doing, and the ending misjudges what it has earned. John Miller (Alan Ritchson) is a big, quiet man who builds cars and is in love with Sophia (Shailene Woodley). Reynolds (Ben Foster), who runs the city’s drug trade and keeps a police lieutenant, Savick (Pablo Schreiber), in his pocket, wants her as well. Miller is framed, arrested and sent to prison, and the second half is what he does about it. None of this is explained aloud. We are told it by a glance across a bar, a bag placed in a car, a cell door closing, and Ponciroli trusts us to keep up, which is more than most action films of this size manage. The method suits violence. The prison break, cut by Joe Galdo to the Moody Blues, is the film’s best stretch, a long piece of movement across yards and corridors where the song sets the tempo and the picture keeps it. An elevator fight, later, is fought in a space too small for the men in it, and Ritchson uses his bulk as a problem rather than an advantage, wedging and heaving. We held the armrest through it. John Matysiak shoots the city at night, in headlights and neon, and keeps the camera close enough that a fist landing has weight. This is well staged and it does not flinch. Foster is the performance to watch. Denied lines, he plays Reynolds as a man permanently on the edge of a decision, with a stillness that reads as threat, and he is the only one who seems to find the silence natural rather than a rule. Lionel Boyce and Amar Chadha-Patel, as Youngblood and Singh, do sharp, funny work as men who plainly have opinions and cannot voice them. Schreiber’s Savick is a wall of bad intent. Ritchson has presence and a face the camera likes when it is bruised; whether he can act is a question the film’s conceit is built not to answer, and it does not. The trouble is Sophia. Woodley is given a woman to be wanted by two men and little else, and a film that has removed everyone’s voice has removed hers at a particular cost. She is looked at; she rarely does. The songs, so effective early, become a habit. Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” arrives exactly when you expect it, and every slow-motion walk comes with a record we already know. Somewhere past the hour we felt managed rather than moved, cued to a feeling by a chorus. Then, in the last act, the needle drops stop and Steve Jablonsky’s score takes over, thick and low and anonymous, and the film goes flat at the moment it most needs lift. Mayne Berke’s Detroit is a 1970s of the mind rather than the record, vinyl banquettes and rust and wide chrome, and it is handsome. Amy Roth puts Foster in tailoring and Ritchson in denim, which counts as characterisation here, since there is nothing else to do it. Jack White turns up at a piano, which is the film’s idea of a joke, and a fair one. Against its ancestors it is honest pulp. *Point Blank* (1967) and *Le Samouraï* (1967) also starved their men of words, but in those films the man did not speak because of who he was. Here nobody speaks because the film has decided so, and you can feel the decision. John Woo’s *Silent Night* (2023) tried the same wager and was both sillier and sadder. Ponciroli’s version is more fun and thinks less. Its final stretch, which we will not describe, adds a coda the film did not need and does not survive. See it with the sound up and expectations moderate. It is a lean 104 minutes, it hits hard, and it has a soundtrack you will hum on the way home. What else you remember of it by the weekend is another matter. *Fi1m score 68, published 23 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics come out of Motor City having enjoyed themselves, and the praise gathers around the same few things. The decision to strip out all but a handful of lines is read as a confident throwback to action films that trusted the picture to do the work, and the 1970s needle drops are credited with carrying whole scenes. The set pieces are singled out repeatedly, an elevator fight and a prison escape in particular, and the reviews are warm about Alan Ritchson’s lead and Ben Foster alongside him. The reservations cluster at the end. Variety finds the final act abandons the songs for a bland score and misjudges its epilogue, and Collider calls the ending silly; plot holes and thin characters are noted more than once. The spread is wide, from an A- at The Playlist to a low mark from Paste, where Jim Vorel finds the wordless conceit pretentious and the female lead regressive, and Screen Daily judges it more style than substance. ## Straight answers **Is Motor City worth watching?** *Motor City* is worth an evening for anyone who wants a lean, hard-hitting revenge thriller with a gimmick, and we scored it 68. Nobody speaks for 104 minutes and a jukebox of 1970s records carries the story, which works for about an hour before the songs become a habit and the ending goes flat. Come for the prison break and Ben Foster; do not expect much of a story underneath. **How long is Motor City, and what is it rated?** *Motor City* runs 1h 44m. It is an action and thriller film. **Where can I watch Motor City in Colombia?** *Motor City* is not on any streaming or rental service in Colombia at the moment. It is available in 1 other country; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily. **How violent or frightening is Motor City, and is it suitable for children?** *Motor City* is a brutal revenge thriller, rated R in the United States, and it is not suitable for children. The violence is close and heavy, with a prison break and an elevator fight staged so that every fist landing has weight, and the film does not flinch. Older teenagers used to action films will manage; the squeamish should look elsewhere. ### Reviews we read (9) - **RogerEbert.com**, Matt Zoller Seitz (78/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's commitment to its dialogue-free visual language and stylized emotional extremes, comparing it favorably to John Woo's 'Silent Night' as an 'inverted opera' that rewards engagement with its imagery and performances despite some wobbly moments and overfamiliar needle drops. They single out the strong ensemble acting (especially Ben Foster, Lionel Boyce, and Amar Chadha-Patel) and the intense, stylized action and revenge sequences for praise, while noting the film's non-historical 1970s Detroit aesthetic works well. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/motor-city-action-movie-review-2026) - **Variety**, Owen Gleiberman (77/100, inferred): The critic calls it an audacious, high-wire stylized crime thriller with an operatic temperament, highlighting visionary hypnotic needle drops (like Fleetwood Mac's 'The Chain' and others) that elevate scenes into pure opera and Ponciroli's talent for expressive actors and audacious choices. They single out the prison-escape sequence set to the Moody Blues and the overall immersive experience for praise, while complaining that the final act drops the needle-drop approach for a bland score and that the epilogue feels like a miscalculation. [Read](https://variety.com/2026/film/reviews/motor-city-review-shailene-woodley-ben-foster-1236810506/) - **Screen Daily** (59/100, inferred): The critic finds the 1970s Detroit-set revenge thriller more style than substance, calling it a schlocky, dialogue-light B-movie that is deliberately pulpy and not to be taken seriously. They single out the impressively gnarly stunt work and action set pieces, plus Ben Foster's performance, for praise, while noting music does much of the heavy lifting. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/motor-city-review-seventies-detroit-revenge-thriller-proves-more-style-than-substance/5208369.article) - **The Playlist**, Ankit Jhunjhunwala (A-): The critic praises the film as an honest, throwback 1970s-style actioner that succeeds with its wordless conceit, delivering bloody, brutal action and big performances without relying on inane dialogue. They single out the intense, prolonged elevator fight sequence and Alan Ritchson's hulking, charismatic lead performance as standout elements that make it a crowd-pleasing showcase. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/motor-city-review-alan-ritchson-brings-the-testosterone-the-kills-and-the-thrills-in-wordless-actioner-tiff-20250906/) - **Polygon**, Terry Terrones (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's confidence in stripping dialogue to a minimum and trusting the audience to follow visual storytelling, production design, and a '70s soundtrack, calling it a refreshing throwback that reminds viewers of how the best action films have always worked without over-explaining. [Read](https://www.polygon.com/motor-city-review/) - **Deadline**, Stephanie Bunbury (78/100, inferred): The critic finds the dialogue-free thriller a dazzling demonstration of genre-movie pyrotechnics and pastiche, praising its slick pace, music cues, and retro charm while noting some plot holes and thin characterization as part of its fun, knowing style. [Read](https://deadline.com/2025/08/motor-city-review-potsy-poncirolis-ben-foster-shailene-woodley-venice-1236502263/) - **The Wrap**, Steve Pond (77/100, inferred): The critic describes it as a hyper-adrenalized revenge thriller that works for pulp fans as a loud, dialogue-free action ride, commending its inventive set pieces, music, and commitment to the gimmick while acknowledging it may not suit everyone. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/motor-city-review-shut-up-weve-got-an-action-flick-goin-on-here/) - **Collider**, Aidan Kelley (7/10): The critic finds it a thrill ride with a unique no-dialogue approach that makes it feel like a throwback to visual storytelling, praising Ritchson's performance and the soundtrack while noting some plot holes, overly long slow-mo/music sequences, and a silly ending. [Read](https://collider.com/alan-ritchson-motor-city-review-john-wick/) - **Paste**, Jim Vorel (4.8/10): The critic views the no-dialogue gimmick as pretentious and self-satisfied, arguing it doesn't meaningfully evolve the familiar revenge story or characters (especially the regressive female lead) and relies on artifice rather than genuine visual communication, though the third-act action provides some entertaining brutality. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/action-movies/motor-city-review-2025-alan-ritchson-movie-shailene-woodley-dialogue-style-detroit) ## Details - **Director:** Potsy Ponciroli - **Director:** Potsy Ponciroli - **Writer:** Chad St. John - **Cinematography:** John Matysiak - **Editor:** Joe Galdo - **Music:** Steve Jablonsky - **Production design:** Mayne Berke - **Costume design:** Amy Roth - **Producer:** Jon Berg, Cliff Roberts, Greg Silverman - **Cast:** Alan Ritchson as John Miller; Ben Foster as Reynolds; Shailene Woodley as Sophia; Lionel Boyce as Youngblood; Amar Chadha-Patel as Singh; Pablo Schreiber as Lieutenant Savick; Dominic Bogart as Porthos; Mister Fitzgerald as Aramis - **Runtime:** 1h 44m - **First release (Italy):** 30 August 2025 - **Genres:** Action, Thriller, Crime - **Budget:** $30 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6RklhKu9os ## Where to watch in Colombia Not streaming, renting or buying in Colombia at the last check. Also available in: US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *Point Blank* (1967): Lee Marvin barely speaks either, and the silence belongs to him, not the director - *Le Samouraï* (1967): The original quiet man with a gun, in a Paris the colour of rain - *Silent Night* (2023): John Woo’s wordless revenge film: sillier, sadder, and worth comparing - *Blue Collar* (1978): Detroit car workers, real grievance, and everyone talks; the corrective - *I Saw the Devil* (2010): Korean revenge taken to the far end, if the brutality here felt polite --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/motor-city