It is the risk of these five former Special Forces activists trying to experience a theft for the first time in their lives. In a low-density multi-border region of South America, these unknown heroes are trying to do this dangerous task in order to get what they want. Things turn and events take an unexpected turn, so these unknown heroes will enter into an epic battle to survive before everything becomes catastrophic.
Triple Frontier becomes a fascinating sustained exercise in absurdist triage, as one mishap after another forces the men to decide whether they're prepared to throw away obscene amounts of money in order to save their skins.
Director J.C. Chandor's go-big-or-go-home heist film finds its footing for a little while amid a perversely engrossing explosion of opportunity costs. But the rest of this mas-macho meathead stuff just seems simultaneously beneath, and beyond, him.
The element of surprise has largely disappeared from modern mainstream moviemaking. And one of Triple Frontier's greatest accomplishments is how confidently it topples the expectations of a wary and weathered audience.
On a surface level, TRIPLE FRONTIER is an action thriller that provides teeth gritting scenes that cause the palms to get a bit sweaty. To call this film intense is an understatement, but Boal's script just barely scratches the psyche of these guys.
While the action itself is vividly shot and often quite tense, the characters are so thinly drawn that it's impossible to connect with them, much less care about whether they make a clean getaway with their stolen millions.
