From the start of She Rides SH๏τgun, it’s very clear that something isn’t quite right. Eleven-year-old Polly (Ana Sophia Heger) waits for her mom outside her school, but as the afternoon slips away, she doesn’t show. Instead, a car pulls up to the curb, and a voice from inside calls Polly over. Right away, we’re on edge just as much as Polly is.
The driver is Nate (Taron Egerton), Polly’s estranged father, who, until recently, was incarcerated. As Polly warily steps up to the car, she unknowingly sets off on a journey that will leave both her and her dad profoundly changed. I was moved by She Rides SH๏τgun, even with some narrative speed bumps.
Taron Egerton & Ana Sophia Heger Are Incredible
She Rides SH๏τgun’s Central Relationship Is Made Even More Compelling Thanks To Them
Director Nick Rowland stages the first portion of the movie cleverly. We are firmly kept in Polly’s shoes, which means we’re piecing together bits of information just like she is. She begs Nate to explain what happened to her mother — has she been hurt at all, did Nate hurt her himself? — and we feel increasingly concerned about the situation Polly’s found herself in.
Although Nate is her father, it’s soon apparent that he’s a dangerous man, and it is unclear what his motives are for taking her. Through whispered conversations with former ᴀssociates and news reports, a bigger picture of Nate’s situation is revealed, and it isn’t pretty.
It’s a brilliant, gut-wrenching performance, and it’s made all the better by Egerton’s chemistry with Heger.
Despite the clear threat Nate poses, though, a genuine connection begins to form between father and daughter. The movie, based on Jordan Harper’s book of the same name, is at its strongest when it focuses on the relationship between Nate and Polly. The things he teaches her, and the actions she witnesses simply by being around him, are horrifying, but you still find yourself rooting for them.
Harper co-wrote the screenplay for the movie alongside Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski.
This is largely due to Egerton and Heger’s performances. In a role that is very removed from his star-making parts in the Kingsman movies and Rocketman, Egerton cements himself as one of the most underrated actors of his generation. Nate is a difficult character to play; he must elicit genuine fear while also, somehow, convincing use that he can be trusted with his own child.
It’s a brilliant, gut-wrenching performance. It’s made all the better by Egerton’s chemistry with Heger. The young actor is a revelation, effortlessly flitting between Polly’s wide-eyed sweetness and her darker side, which is growing at a concerning rate throughout the film.
She Rides SH๏τgun poses some thorny scenarios in exploring Nate and Polly’s relationship, but I found myself utterly riveted by it. In one particularly heartbreaking moment, Nate admits he doesn’t know a thing about his own daughter — what her after-school hobbies are, what she wants to be when she grows up — but he’s desperate to learn every little detail. In this scene alone, Egerton is stunning.
She Rides SH๏τgun Stalls When It Gets Away From Nate & Polly
But They Still Make The Final Act Engrossing
When She Rides SH๏τgun goes beyond Nate and Polly’s world, it loses some of its special intrigue. There’s a separate plotline involving Nate’s ties to a local gang — specifically its leader, who has put a “greenlight” on Nate that allows his ᴀssociates to kill him and anyone he loves. At the same time, a determined detective (Rob Yang) is eager to use Nate’s connections to his advantage.
John Carroll Lynch puts in a chilling performance as the movie’s primary villain, and Yang’s Detective Park builds up a compelling rapport with Nate and Polly. Still, though, the web Nate’s found himself caught in is complex, and in pulling him in deeper, She Rides SH๏τgun seems to pull away from the familial dynamic at its heart.
At the same time, it’s hard not to become engrossed in the action-packed climax because of our investment in Nate and Polly. If I found myself on the edge of my seat watching this, it was less because I was dying to see bad guys get taken down, and more because I was desperate to learn whether Nate and Polly would be okay.
To find that out, you’ll have to watch the movie. As a whole, it isn’t an easy watch, but Egerton and Heger’s standout characters make it a worthy viewing experience. She Rides SH๏τgun packs a punch — or, to use one of Nate’s lessons for Polly, hits you like a baseball bat to the back of the head. The subplot with the local gang may be forgettable, but the father-daughter relationship will stick with you for a long time.
