OVERVIEW
The Rip is a Miami cop thriller about a specialized narcotics unit that hits a stash house and finds an insane amount of cartel cash. The protocol requires counting all the money before they can move it, trapping them inside while outside forces close in. The longer they are forced to sit there, counting, the more the job becomes a test of loyalty and nerves.
BACKGROUND
After directing one of the worst films of 2025, Shadow Force, Joe Carnahan returns to the tough, sweaty genre that defined his career. Loosely inspired by a real Miami-Dade story shared by a friend, he was interested in exploring the paranoia a massive cash seizure can create, especially given the rule that the money must be counted on-site before anyone can move it. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck were already a natural fit for the material and liked the script, but the project also made a lot of sense for their production company, Artists Equity, given a new deal arranged with Netflix. The streaming service still pays everyone normally, but a rare performance bonus will be awarded to the cast and crew if the film hits targets in its first 90 days (funny for a movie about who gets a cut). An upside that, if successful, can make a production company more appealing to future talent.
EXECUTION
Like the production company’s The Instigators (which also featured Matt Damon), The Rip is what every streaming original should aim to be: an entertaining, well put together feature that does not use the fact it will largely be watched on TV screens as an excuse to lean on obvious green screen and flimsy dialogue. In other words, it feels like the kind of movie you might have caught in a theater a few years ago, before this genre became so closely tied to the comfort of the couch.
It is not the most original, nor will it make you sweat in anticipation, but the script builds its catharsis and characters well enough to make you question who to trust (although let’s be honest, it is not hard to spot who is genuine, which makes it pretty easy to figure out who is lying by elimination). The setup is also tough enough to make you wonder how they get out of that house alive.
After crafting adequate suspense through the film’s first hour, Carnahan is effective at always letting you know where everyone is in the house, very important for a movie built around paranoia and shifting alliances. He doles out information and pressure at a good pace, such as the changes in Desi’s behavior and the characters’ remarks that they must put a vest on the dog (though the telephone countdown could have been used more effectively). He only truly turns up the excitement once the action kicks in, and while there is not a ton of it, it is staged with real weight: real cars, real crashes, real impact, not weightless digital noise. The shootouts are clear, and the sound mixing is punchy, but the highlight is a vehicle chase sequence in the third act.
Clinton Shorter’s score does not leave much of an impression, and neither does most of the supporting cast, unfortunately (Teyana Taylor will hopefully be offered bigger roles after her upcoming One Battle After Another Oscar nomination). Sasha Calle has an interesting part, but the film does very little with it, while Kyle Chandler plays the same character he has played at least 20 times already.
The characters who get proper development are, as you can expect, the two main cops played by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. Despite silly tattoos, Damon’s character has a tragic backstory, which the actor sells quite well, and he makes a choice that rightfully has Affleck’s Detective Sergeant uncomfortable, leading to the film’s most unpredictable beat.
The chemistry between the two remains as sharp as it has ever been since their baby, Good Will Hunting, catapulted them to A-listers. Affleck brings the dry humor he brought to The Accountant 2 last year, while still carrying that Bruce Wayne-adjacent stoicism he has leaned on in several recent roles. Damon stretches a bit more at times, tapping a bit into Denzel Washington in Training Day territory. The film never challenges their chemistry in a memorable way, but it works well enough as the movie’s backbone.
As the plot unfolds and we follow the tired ‘corrupt cop’ trope, there comes a point when you want the film to hurry up through its lengthy dialogue scenes and focus on the suspense. It also feels the need to give us flashbacks recapitulating what we have already seen, as if anticipating that viewers are watching while swiping. Yet overall, the strength of its action scenes and the charisma of Damon and Affleck keep us invested.
AFTERTASTE
The Rip is a film you will most likely not remember a few days after watching, but it provides enough thrills and twists for a good Netflix watch. It looks and sounds like a real movie, which, in this day and age, is something worth celebrating.