A specialized police unit comes under siege after uncovering millions in the wake of a police captain’s murder in The Rip, a high-octane cop drama now streaming on Netflix. This Miami-set police tale doesn’t quite match the Affleck-starring Triple Frontier as one of the streamer’s best original action films, but it comes close thanks to an engaging cast and fluid, tense direction from Joe Carnahan, who continues a rebound streak begun with last month’s Not Without Hope.
The Rip stars Matt Damon as stoic Lieutenant Dane Dumars, who has assumed lead over the Miami-Dade Police Department’s Tactical Narcotics Team following the brutal murder of Captain Jackie Velez (Lina Esco) at the hands of masked men in the film’s opening scene. With an internal link to the murder suspected, FBI investigators led by Del Byrne (Scott Adkins) question members of the TNT—including Detective Sergeant J.D. Byrne (Ben Affleck), who just happens to be Del’s brother, Jackie’s lover, and Dane’s good friend who was passed over for his recent promotion.
But that’s all backstory. The TNT specializes in retrieving hidden money from stash houses with the help of a cash-smelling dog (played by an adorable beagle named Wilbur), and as the investigation into Jackie’s murder goes nowhere, Dane decides to follow a tip that happens to be the last message she sent him: a Hialeah home inhabited by the benevolent Desi (Sasha Calle), who seems to be completely unaware of the large volume of cartel cash hidden in her grandmother’s attic.
Following procedure, Dane’s team—Detectives Mike Ro (Steven Yeun), Numa Baptiste (Teyana Taylor), and Lolo Salazar (Catalina Sandino Moreno), in addition to Affleck’s J.D.—begin counting the massive score on site before hauling it back to the station. But they soon get threatening phone calls before a hail of bullets begins to rain down on the location.
Working from a screenplay co-written with Michael McGrale and improbably attributed to a true story, director Carnahan does a great job here of balancing a more complex narrative with Netflix-dictated requirements of second-screen content. At no point will viewers only casually tuned in here be lost in the story, but the director also rewards those paying close attention; while we can easily guess at where The Rip is headed, we aren’t disappointed when we’re proven right.
It’s clear from the outset—a conversation between Dane and Major Thom Vallejo (Néstor Carbonell) that precedes the action—that the Lieutenant is up to something, and he’s only using the titular mission as a ruse to uncover those responsible for Jackie’s death. And while The Rip is a straightforward police thriller on the surface, underneath is a canny murder mystery that keeps us truly invested—at least, until a protracted action climax that unfolds after all the cards have been dealt.
But where The Rip really excels is in its star-powered cast, highlighted by Damon and Affleck, who share a terrific rapport as a mutual mistrust develops between their characters over the course of the movie. There’s little room in the movie for character development, but each member of the primary cast—including Oscar-nominated Yeun and Sandino Moreno, and Taylor, soon to be nominated for her work in One Battle After Another—gets their moment to shine. Kyle Chandler, however, isn’t as lucky in a tertiary role as a DEA agent.
Only negative: locations in Los Angeles and New Jersey stand in for those in Miami throughout the film, and The Rip never gets a chance to utilize its central location. This could have been Damon and Affleck’s Bad Boys, or even Miami Vice, but the generic-feeling presentation fails to give the movie any tangible atmosphere; even some brief establishing shots of the Florida city would have added a lot here.
The Rip may not match up to the finest Hollywood police thrillers, but on the level of direct-to-streaming content, it stands high. Among recent comparisons, it doesn’t have the hard-hitting action of Gareth Evans‘ Havoc, but it does have a more satisfying story and characters (both movies, meanwhile, struggle with location work).
While it may not be a defining entry in the modern cop-thriller canon, The Rip succeeds as a smartly assembled piece of Netflix-era genre filmmaking. Carnahan’s confident direction, a twist-driven narrative, and a reliably strong ensemble elevate material that might otherwise feel routine. For viewers looking for a tightly plotted police drama with recognizable stars and just enough thematic weight beneath the gunfire, The Rip delivers a satisfying score.
