‘The Instigators’: Rare Fail for A-Lister Crew

Rory (Matt Damon) and Cobby (Casey Affleck) in "The Instigators." AppleTV+

R | 1h 41m | Comedy, Heist, Thriller | Aug. 9, 2024

“The Instigators” has all the trappings of a really fun movie. It’s Boston-based, and when we think of Boston movies, we think about the Damon-Affleck Dynasty; “Good Will Hunting,” “Gone Baby Gone,” and “The Town.” There’s also the Damon-Affleck winning combo that produced and starred in “Air.”

Granted, all that was older brother Ben Affleck, but younger sibling Casey Affleck was also in “Good Will Hunting.” In this installment of the Damon-Affleck magic, “The Instigators” was written by and stars the younger Affleck, with Damon along for the ride.

Promotional poster for "The Instigators." AppleTV+

They all grew up in the Boston area and Damon went to Hahh-vud (Harvard), so they don’t have to act when doing Boston accents. Both are charismatic performers, and of the two Afflecks and one Damon, Casey’s got the most substantial comedic chops. This should be a winning formula!

So how on earth did this stellar cast of Hollywood heavyweights create such a flyweight production? I mean, just look at the rest of this cast: Alfred Molina, Ron Perlman, Ving Rhames, Michael Stuhlbarg, DAndre De Shields, and Toby Jones.

When the actors have this much talent, the production fail usually lies with the director. However, this is Doug Liman we’re talking about—director of mega-hit, “The Bourne Identity,” “Edge of Tomorrow,” ”Mr. & Mrs. Smith,“ and the recent ”Road House“ remake. So this misfire is a real head-scratcher.

The Doings

Rory (Damon) is an ex-Marine. His marriage died, and he’s got an estranged son and a huge amount of debt. His psychotherapist (Hong Chau) thinks Rory might be thinking about eating his gun.

An opportunity arises to get out of debt! Perennially angry local gangster Besegai (Michael Stuhlbarg) recruits a bumbling, low-IQ crew of lowlifes to pull off a heist of Mayor Miccelli’s (Ron Perlman) war chest during a re-election fundraiser. Shouldn’t take more than, say, 15 minutes. 

The crew includes ex-con Cobby (Affleck), Rory (who has no prior theft experience), and another contentious and arrogant fellow named Scalvo (played by rapper Jack Harlow).

Rory’s not particularly ambitious; he only wants only to walk away with $32,480 out of the deal, to pay his debts. That’s it. No more, no less. He reiterates this figure as though it’s a running gag. It builds no comedic momentum whatsoever. I’m guessing the blueprint for this joke was Mel Gibson’s character’s running gag in “Payback” of wanting only $70,000 when much more was available, but that iteration flew; this one sinks. Likewise, Damon’s gag as a neophyte thief who needs to take crib notes on how to stage a robbery is leaden.

Nope

Things start go wrong immediately. There’s supposedly a safe holding huge amounts of cash in duffel bags, ripe for a smash-and-grab. But the little boat they’re using to infiltrate the building via Boston harbor suddenly starts taking on water. “May Day” intones Cobby to no one in particular. The small sack in the safe contains one-dollar bills.

Now Rory and Cobby are on the lam, having taken Rory’s psychiatrist “hostage,” followed by a very long, rather absurd car chase involving giant numbers of city and state police cars, helicopters, and even tanks. But the very untalented thieves Rory and Cobby manage to get away.

Hong Chau, Casey Affleck, and Matt Damon in the "Instigators." Handout/Handout

Director Liman summons up the action skills he’s known for, but Damon and Affleck, normally a perfectly paired comic duo, can’t get any sparks happening. Only Affleck produces fleeting comedic moments, here and there, all by himself.

Made-for-TV movies tend to be really good these days. When they are good, they’re usually very, very good. But when they are bad, they’re sometimes horrid.

“The Instigators” debuts on Apple TV+ for streaming on Aug. 9.

Promotional poster for "The Instigators." AppleTV+

‘The Instigators’ Director: Doug Liman Starring: Matt Damon, Casey Affleck, Alfred Molina, Ron Perlman, Ving Rhames, Michael Stuhlbarg, Toby Jones MPAA Rating: R Running Time: 1 hour, 41 minutes Release Date: Aug. 9, 2024 Rating: 2 stars out of 5

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