A Working Man
2025 · Directed by David Ayer
Original language: English
- action
- crime
- thriller
The story
Levon Cade left behind a decorated military career in the black ops to live a simple life working construction. But when his boss's daughter, who is like family to him, is taken by human traffickers, his search to bring her home uncovers a world of corruption far greater than he ever could have imagined.
What it’s like
Hard-edged and grimy, shot in dusty daylight and sodium-orange interiors: sun-bleached London streets, half-built sites of concrete and scaffolding, and the cold blue-grey of police stations and dim warehouses. The camera stays close and handheld in the fight scenes, so impacts feel physical and disorienting, while quieter stretches settle into steadier medium shots of a man working with his hands. The score is a driving, percussive pulse of synths and low strings, with long stretches of ambient street noise and drills ringing out over the job site. Vibe: grim, propulsive, weathered. It suits a Friday night with the lights off, or a loud, sweaty afternoon when you want something that doesn't let up. Pacing is relentless once the kidnapping kicks off, with the protagonist a stoic, quietly tender everyman who turns cold and methodical as he tears through a web of corruption. Violence is frequent and brutal: close-quarters beatings, gunfire, stabbings and bloody aftermath, with some gore and grim cruelty toward victims, including trafficking-related menace. Not gentle at all. Made for viewers who want old-school revenge thrillers with a hard, unsentimental edge and don't mind the darkness of their subject matter.
More films like A Working Man
Closest in mood, pacing and theme. Tell us why you loved A Working Manand we’ll explain which ones fit you.
