Tramps

It's a simple movie that covers a short time span.

Grace Van Patten is the reason to watch.

Tramps is a fantastic film. I watched this on a whim knowing virtually nothing about it and from the opening scene it was apparent this was going to be a great watch.

This is basically a modern romance story. Set in New York two young people are brought together under rather unconventional circumstances, seemingly cut from a completely different cloth and find themselves embarking on an adventure to rectify a mistake and hopefully make a little cash.

Danny, played by Callum Turner, is a "good kid" with aspirations of becoming a chef who ends up having to run an errand for his apparently inept older brother. This leads to an encounter with Ellie, played by Grace Van Patten, a street wise girl who is worldly beyond her years and as such is a tad jaded, a quality that seems to mystify Danny who's sincerity and sweet nature catches Ellie off guard at first.

What ensues is simply one of the most charming films I've seen in years. The dialogue and acting are superb. Each of the films leads deliver the excellently crafted script so naturally that it feels entirely believable.

The ending could easily have run into hackneyed territory but cleverly avoids it. In summary, this is a terrific film and everyone involved did an outstanding job.

Beautiful, petty-larcenous losers find love on the run. Grace Van Patten as Ellie percolates the atmosphere with her effortless cool (she's cooler than a mint julep) and superb acting. She's a natural thriller that reveals a new layer with every frame she's in. I'm reminded of a young Shailene Woodley, only far prettier and more graceful. Callum Turner provides a perfect foil for Grace/Ellie as Danny. An awkward, stumblebum of sorts, who orbits Ellie, fully enthralled by her, as he should be. Despite their obvious differences, the two do share a strangely sublime chemistry on the screen together. It's always good to see the average dude get the hot chick. Their misadventures are fun to follow. There is even a Casablanca-esque moment (I won't say too much as to not spoil it) that would make old Bogie's heart skip. A progressive romcom that isn't afraid to laugh at itself. The negatives...the dialogue is under-imagined at times and only the two lead characters are memorable.

Tramps is a sweet 2016 urban romance very much of our time: Two young untried couriers, millennials Danny (Callum Turner) and Ellie (Grace Van Patten), are involved in a petty larceny for his brother involving switching briefcases. Inexperienced but charmingly boyish Danny switches the wrong one, and his convict brother is not happy.

James Bond or True Romance this mini-thriller is not. Director-writer Adam Leon has rather a story of two potential lovers running the streets and subways of Manhattan to find the right briefcase and set things right with his brother. The excitement is to see how these tyros can work things out and maybe fall in love in the meantime. The latter is slow to come and never overwhelming, given the two are also inexperienced in the exchange of love.

Yet, that simplicity of love and plot are cinematic elixir next to intricate super-hero or Scorsese-hoodlum thrillers. As the protagonists of Tramps show how they are not tramps but two engaging young folks trying to make some money in hard times.

The scenes in NY subways provide ample tension, as they always do, but the scenes in the burbs crackle with the urbanite fish-out-of water negotiating the home and lives of the snooty owners. The city/country contrast is more like a slapstick comedy than a mystery because they have only a small idea of how to find the rightful owner of the other bag.

Tramps is a soft mystery involving a babbling young man and a stony young woman, both out of their element. Helping them along is Leon's score peppered with folk and country music spot on for fitting sound with sense. Here's an enjoyable 82 min escape that brings home the joy of watching love take hold in a bizarre and soothing story. Thanks Netflix.

Clocking in at 82 mins, this all too familiar story of boy meets girl (or the other way around) and ensuing attraction works on account of its two leads and the the crisp unfolding of those 82 mins. The editing and pacing, which leaves little to be desired, is tight. The film plot is believable and not contrived. The humour is subtle and works in that regard. In short it's hard to find faults with this tight American rom-com from 2016.