Rating: R | Runtime: 103 minutes
Release Date: July 24th, 2026 (USA)
Studio: Independent Film Company
Director(s): Potsy Ponciroli
Writer(s): Chad St. John

You should’ve seen the honeymoon.

Potsy Ponciroli’s Motor City is extremely my jam. Pure style over substance that delivers a viscerally absorbing, sensorial experience. It’s like a dialogue-free jukebox musical wherein almost all lines delivered by actors are blocked or muffled. Whether trapped behind glass, sent via morse code, or replaced by intuitive glances and expressions, we don’t need words to understand. All we need is the propulsive soundtrack and action to lock-in our attention.

Because the story is little more than a catalyst. Man (Alan Ritchson) loves woman (Shailene Woodley). Man is framed by the woman’s domineering ex (Ben Foster) with help from a corrupt cop (Pablo Schreiber). Man recruits his former Rangers squad (Lionel Boyce and Amar Chadha-Patel) to enact his vengeance. It’s perfect fodder for overwrought melodrama, music video-esque slo-mo sequences in the rain, and heart-pounding close-quarters fisticuffs.

The 1970s vibe is top-notch with Foster wearing the hell out of those oversize frames and a soundtrack consisting of extended cuts that include The Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin”, Bill Withers’ “Lovely Day”, and Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” (to really mimic the similar experience “The Americans” often pulled off). It’s so period-specific that you’ll find yourself lamenting the fact a certain pianist cameo can’t provide a song too … until the end credits, of course.

A cinematic journey that was a long-time in the making (with Greg Friedman apparently commissioning the script from Chad St. John in 2006), Ponciroli, cinematographer John Matysiak, composer Steve Jablonsky, and editor Joe Galdo were up to the task alongside a cast that embraced its physicality and expressionistic style. Credit the stellar makeup department too for the epilogue’s old age looks. I thought the Star Child was about to appear.

The film is also a good reminder of just how huge Schreiber is. Sure, he towers over Ben McKenzie and Foster, but he’s got two inches on Ritchson too. Add Boyce and Chadha-Patel to the mix and this is quite the imposing line-up.

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Alan Ritchson in Potsy Ponciroli’s MOTOR CITY. Courtesy of Independent Film Company. An Independent Film Company Release.