Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows Shop News Showtimes

Asphalt City

Play trailer 2:24 Poster for Asphalt City R Released Mar 29 2h 5m Mystery & Thriller Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
45% Tomatometer 51 Reviews 55% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Verified Ratings
Asphalt City follows Ollie Cross (Tye Sheridan), a young paramedic assigned to the NYC night shift with an uncompromising and seasoned partner Gene Rutkovsky (Sean Penn). The dark nights reveal a city in crisis; Rutkovsky guides Cross, as each 911 call is often dangerous and uncertain, putting their lives on the line every day to help others. Cross soon discovers firsthand the chaos and awe of a job that careens from harrowing to heartfelt, testing his relationship with Rutkovsky and the ethical ambiguity that can be the difference between life and death.
Watch on Fandango at Home Buy Now

Where to Watch

Asphalt City

Asphalt City

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Asphalt City can be commended for trying to highlight the unforgiving nature of EMT work, but the unrelentingly grim end results prove a punishing watch.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View All (51) Critics Reviews
Kevin Maher Times (UK) Despite the director Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire throwing everything at the screen, the star is frequently sublime in a brutal and unrelenting film. Rated: 3/5 Apr 22, 2024 Full Review Tim Cogshell FilmWeek (KPCC - NPR Los Angeles) Grabs you by the throat about four or five times, but then you got all that other space, where we gotta talk about our feelings. Apr 5, 2024 Full Review Amy Nicholson FilmWeek (KPCC - NPR Los Angeles) I found this gloomy, gloomy, gloomy, and it made me sad because I like Tye Sheridan as an actor. This movie isn't doing him any favors. Apr 5, 2024 Full Review Brittany Patrice Witherspoon Pop Culture Reviews ...this is truly an entertaining film. It says a lot more than meets the eye, and quite frankly, it’s better than it had any right to be. Strap on your seatbelts for this one. Rated: 3.5/5 Jul 26, 2024 Full Review Chuck Bowen Style Weekly (Richmond, VA) All I see at age 44 are the clichés and the generalizations and the flashes of “style" that suggest less torment than ice cream headache. Jul 10, 2024 Full Review Nathaniel Fetalvero The New Paper (Singapore) If you're willing to brave the darkness, Asphalt City offers a compelling and unforgettable experience that is bound to leave a lasting impression. Rated: 3/5 Jun 10, 2024 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (4) audience reviews
Brian W Powerful film about the forgotten heroes. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 04/09/24 Full Review Serena I truly didn't know what paramedics go through being first responders. Made me appreciate all first responders so much more than I already do. It was a good movie but a bit depressing too. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 04/04/24 Full Review Mr. Hollywood Was promising but missed the mark. It started out promising enough but then added a storyline that was not needed. Feels like they were not happy with showing a regular EMT they had to go the movie route where someone is accused of a murder. They should have stuck with just showing the hard and easy and bad and good life EMTs have Rated 3 out of 5 stars 04/04/24 Full Review Oleksandr G Dark, grim, but still one of the best indies released this year. Outstanding acting by main actors Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/29/24 Full Review Gary J This movie is about as deep as Sean Penn. Cliche everything. They obviously didn't bother to consult with real paramedics. A slap in the face to EMS workers everywhere. What a bunch of idiots. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 10/26/24 Full Review Jelisije J This movie tried to be end of the watch type of film, but with paramedics and oh god its so depressing with no clear story......this would be better off as a weekly tv show like cops. Rated 1 out of 5 stars 10/19/24 Full Review Read all reviews
Asphalt City

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

The Wonder 85% 72% The Wonder Watchlist TRAILER for The Wonder John Henry 0% 22% John Henry Watchlist The Absence of Eden 38% 88% The Absence of Eden Watchlist TRAILER for The Absence of Eden Protocol 7 40% 95% Protocol 7 Watchlist Crisis 66% 60% Crisis Watchlist TRAILER for Crisis Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Asphalt City follows Ollie Cross (Tye Sheridan), a young paramedic assigned to the NYC night shift with an uncompromising and seasoned partner Gene Rutkovsky (Sean Penn). The dark nights reveal a city in crisis; Rutkovsky guides Cross, as each 911 call is often dangerous and uncertain, putting their lives on the line every day to help others. Cross soon discovers firsthand the chaos and awe of a job that careens from harrowing to heartfelt, testing his relationship with Rutkovsky and the ethical ambiguity that can be the difference between life and death.
Director
Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire
Producer
Warren Goz, Eric Gold, Christopher Kopp, Lucan Toh, Sean Penn, John Ira Palmer, John Wildermuth, Tye Sheridan, Tina Wang
Screenwriter
Ryan King, Ben Mac Brown
Distributor
Roadside Attractions / Vertical
Production Co
Two & Two Pictures, Sculptor Media, AZA Films, Projected Picture Works, Force Majeure
Rating
R (Violent Content|Pervasive Language|Graphic Nudity|Disturbing/Bloody Images|Sexual Content|Suicide)
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 29, 2024, Limited
Box Office (Gross USA)
$216.9K
Runtime
2h 5m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio
Digital 2.39:1
Most Popular at Home Now