A promising setup that is ultimately let down by a clunky execution.

For the most part, the narrative is grounded in the realities of being a criminal and felon, and does a good job portraying the complexity of a nuanced issue. Characters are complex, relationships are complicated, and people make dumb choices for dumb reasons because sometimes that's just who they are. Collin and Miles are a great pairing, and serve as outstanding portraits of different parts of their community.

While the movie almost succeeds in walking the narrow line of being social commentary without becoming preachy, the (unnecessary) fourth act abandons any groundedness to deliver a melodramatic invective against police violence. It's a message I support, but its timing and method contrast heavily with the narrative elements that lead to it. Instead of feeling like a dramatic capstone to the events of the film, it comes across as a radical stylistic departure from everything we've seen until then.

Individual components of this movie are excellent, but in my opinion this somewhat misses the mark as a cohesive story. Given the subject matter and how much the movie does uniquely right. I wish I could give it a stronger recommendation; but the pieces don't fit together nearly enough for this to be a must-watch.