Shea Whigham

(On Cable TV, March 2022) In some ways, The Gateway is a solid, routine thriller—a man trying to save a woman and her daughter from an abusive ex-spouse, with a plot that devolves around drugs and organized crime. It’s just distinctive enough to avoid becoming undistinguishable from similar films. For one thing, our character (a solid performance from Shea Whigham) is not a super-powered operative: just a social worker, albeit one who acts as if he represented the full weight of the law—with enough complexities in the character’s backstory to make it a dramatically interesting role. Much of the film is gritty and unglamorous, presenting an interesting showcase for Olivia Munn to show up as the woman in need of help. Frank Grillo also stars, although as a supporting crime boss rather the kind of tough-guy protagonists he often plays. Much of The Gateway feels a bit too long and unfocused—with an action scene late in the film that suggests that the film has trouble finding a way between thriller and drama. Still, the result is slightly more interesting than your run-of-the-mill low-budget crime movie, simply because it looks at a familiar story through a slightly different protagonist.