Netflix Scores Hit With Luke Evans’ Slow-Burn Thriller

Luke Evans’s forgotten 2020s crime thriller, 5 Pounds of Pressure, has surged on Netflix after Prime Video leased the film to other platforms. Since being added to the service, it climbed the US streaming charts and, at the time of writing, sits as the third most popular movie on Netflix this week.

Written and directed by Phil Allocco, the film pairs Evans with Alex Pettyfer, Rory Culkin, Rudy Pankow and Stephanie Leonidas. Evans plays Adam, who returns to his old neighbourhood after a 16-year prison sentence for murder and tries to reconnect with his son and the brother of the person he killed, while a drug dealer and his nephew clash when the younger man wants out of crime; the story focuses on damaged relationships and character over nonstop action.

That slower, more contemplative approach divided viewers and critics, yielding a 57% critic score and a 69% user score on Rotten Tomatoes.

United States

luke evans, 5 pounds, phil allocco, alex pettyfer, rory culkin, rudy pankow, stephanie leonidas, netflix, prime video, rotten tomatoes