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The Instigators

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2:21

The Instigators

R

Released Aug 2, 2024

1h 41m

Action

Comedy

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

40%

Tomatometer

156 Reviews

55%

Popcornmeter

500+ Ratings

Rory (Matt Damon) and Cobby (Casey Affleck) are reluctant partners: a desperate father and an ex-con thrown together to rob a corrupt politician's ill-gained earnings. But when the heist goes wrong, the two find themselves engulfed in a whirlwind of chaos, pursued not only by police but also by backward bureaucrats and vengeful crime bosses. Completely out of their depth, they convince Rory's therapist (Hong Chau) to join their riotous getaway through the city, where they must put aside their differences and work together to evade capture -- or worse.

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Critics Consensus

The alchemy of Casey Affleck and Matt Damon's knucklehead rapport provides some charm, but this laidback caper unravels due to a lack of intrigue and pulse.

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Robert Levin

Newsday

No matter how much heft the Actors Equity team brings to the project on both sides of the camera, there's simply no evading the fact that the movie plays as so inconsequential, so free of meaning and purpose, that it offers nothing to grab onto.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 13, 2024

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Wendy Ide

Observer (UK)

It should be pulpy fun powered by car chases and zippy repartee, but The Instigators is a dispiriting and predictable drag of a movie.

Rated: 2/5

Aug 12, 2024

Full Review

Barry Hertz

Globe and Mail

Certainly, all the ingredients are here for a fun night in, from the absolutely killer cast to the familiar Damon/Affleck stomping grounds of Boston. But nothing quite clicks in this tale of charming low-life thieves.

Aug 12, 2024

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Ross Anthony

Hollywood Report Card

Also, has anyone been saying what a great actor Casey Affleck is? His performances are powerful, emotional, real, purposely un-showey. His low-key retorts in this film are sharp, edgy, and hard-hitting despite their carefully understated delivery.

Rated: 3/4

Apr 9, 2025

Full Review

Pete Vonder Haar

Houston Press

It's fun to see Damon play an idiot (even if the "taking notes at a criminal conspiracy" line was ripped off from The Wire), but Chau is the only factor making this even a mild recommend.

Rated: 2.5/5

Nov 20, 2024

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Erik Childress

Movie Madness Podcast

It is hard to watch Matt Damon play so dumb next to Casey Affleck’s sleepy comic mannerisms in an overly plotted but thinly scripted heist film crossed with political corruption that is part of the definition of this era’s direct-to-streaming content.

Rated: 2/4

Oct 28, 2024

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Yusuf N

Casey Affleck is a gem and his deadpan lines were just delightfully droll!

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/10/24

Full Review

dsh

Plot was ridiculous and implausible, script was terrible and the language was foul - constant f-bombs.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

08/04/24

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JimPalmer

It was interesting but its language was distracting and unnecessary. Have to wonder if the actors children are allowed to see this movie. No need for sentences of profanity.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

08/04/24

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Audience Member

The movie was good. Fun to watch...

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/05/25

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Stephen C

A failure in 1 hour and 41 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Matt Damon is not in his best form.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

06/01/25

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C B

Some good laughs but the movie is too ridiculous to consider giving it a higher rating. I hate to even give a critique for it but for starters, there’s no reason or believable motive for these two guys to do what they did. And why would the psychiatrist feel the need to go along with two of the world’s most dumbest most criminally insane? If this were real life, Matt Damon would have an IQ of 60 and would be considered a psychopath. Zero emotion and he did all that for $32,480? I can’t think of a bigger loser than that.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

05/27/25

Full Review

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Doug Liman

Director

Matt Damon

Rory

Casey Affleck

Cobby

Hong Chau

Actor

Michael Stuhlbarg

Actor

Paul Walter Hauser

Actor

The Instigators: Exclusive Movie Clip - Car Chase

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The Instigators: Trailer 1

2:21

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Synopsis

Rory (Matt Damon) and Cobby (Casey Affleck) are reluctant partners: a desperate father and an ex-con thrown together to rob a corrupt politician's ill-gained earnings. But when the heist goes wrong, the two find themselves engulfed in a whirlwind of chaos, pursued not only by police but also by backward bureaucrats and vengeful crime bosses. Completely out of their depth, they convince Rory's therapist (Hong Chau) to join their riotous getaway through the city, where they must put aside their differences and work together to evade capture -- or worse.

Director: Doug Liman
Producer: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jeff Robinov, John Graham, Kevin J. Walsh
Screenwriter: Chuck MacLean
Distributor: Apple TV+
Production Co: The Walsh Company, Apple TV+, Studio 8, Apple Studios, Apple Original Films, Artists Equity
Rating: R (Some Violence|Pervasive Language)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Mystery & Thriller, Crime
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 2, 2024, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 9, 2024
Runtime: 1h 41m

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