The Accidental Getaway Driver

Sing J. Lee’s quiet, big-hearted debut feature is steeped in the sorrow and yearning of its Vietnamese American characters as they work through the lingering trauma of displacement while living in Southern California.

Lee’s too subtle to say it out loud, but there’s a hushed irony in that Long attempted to rebuild a life halfway around the world only to wind up in the same place: captive at gunpoint.

The intent is to remain in his inner world as he goes through this extreme event, but while it is beautiful and poetic, it is also somewhat abstruse and feels in conflict with the momentum of the larger story.

Thoughtful, honorable and sometimes moving, though there may not actually be enough gas in this movie’s tank, narratively speaking, to justify even its comparatively brief running time.

Sing J. Lee's striking neo-noir visuals can't save a low-stakes thriller with vaguely developed characters and clunky dialogue.

A lot of intangibles make you want to acquiesce to Lee's choices. He adds a touch of humanity to what is usually a very callous genre.

The Accidental Getaway Driver sometimes suffers from tedious pacing. However, the movie still delivers effective performances and enough suspense in this drama about a taxi driver forced to transport three escaped prisoners.

More than just a crime thriller, The Accidental Getaway Driver is a melancholic journey through the quiet corners of lost souls.

The Accidental Getaway Driver skillfully blurs the lines between gritty crime noir and a deeply personal human drama. Stars Hiệp Trân Nghĩa and Dustin Nguyen are fantastic in director Sing J. Lee's feature debut.

It could have been an indie masterpiece if it had worked out its tension and pacing issues. As it is, it is still a moving meditation on masculinity, the immigrant experience, and loneliness in modern American life.