They Weren’t Supposed to Be the Heroes

MOVIE REVIEW
Sneakers (4KUHD)
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Genre: Thriller, Crime, Mystery, Comedy, Drama
Year Released: 1992, Kino Lorber 4K 2025
Runtime: 2h 6m
Director(s): Phil Alden Robinson
Writer(s): Phil Alden Robinson, Lawrence Lasker, Walter F. Parkes
Cast: Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier, Dan Aykroyd, River Phoenix, Ben Kingsley, Phil Alden Robinson, Mary McDonnell, David Stathairn, James Earl Jones, Timothy Busfield, Stephen Tobolowsky
Where to Watch: Available April 22, 2025. Pre-order your copy here: www.kinolorber.com or www.amazon.com

RAVING REVIEW: Imagine carrying a secret for over two decades, only for it to resurface through a piece of tech and a government job. That’s the hook that sets SNEAKERS in motion—a clever, offbeat thriller that never tries to outmuscle the genre but outthinks it. Part spy story, part hacker adventure, and part character study, this is a film that trades flashy theatrics for smarter subversions and leans into its ensemble with refreshing confidence, even if not every idea gets the same follow-through.

At its center is Martin Bishop, whose team of security specialists breaks into companies… legally. That’s their business model: find the holes, expose the flaws, and stay just enough ahead of the law to make it all work. But when they're offered a lucrative deal by men claiming to be NSA agents, they quickly find themselves playing someone else’s game. A mysterious device capable of decrypting any digital code becomes the catalyst for a conspiracy that spirals into questions of loyalty, identity, and control.

The real spark of the film isn’t in that black box, though—it’s in the cast tasked with figuring out what it is and what to do with it. Robert Redford leads with understated charisma, grounding the team with equal parts skepticism and authority. Sidney Poitier brings the kind of poise you’d expect from someone who once worked in government black ops. David Strathairn’s Whistler is sharp, decoding audio at an unparalleled level. River Phoenix, in one of his final roles, adds a youthful sincerity as Carl, the team’s enthusiastic recruit. Then there’s Dan Aykroyd, who’s either the most paranoid person in the room or the only one paying attention.

While the film enjoys assembling this unique lineup, it doesn’t always give them equal weight. Each character contributes a distinct energy to the ensemble, but only Redford’s Bishop gets anything resembling a full arc. Everyone else feels built from shorthand and implication. You understand their role in the mission, but not necessarily what brought them to this team or how they’ve changed along the way. It’s not a deal-breaker, but it limits how emotionally invested we can become in each individual beyond their utility in the plot.

Visually, the film doesn’t glamorize its world. Office spaces are cramped, technology is bulky, and operations take place in shadowy warehouses or drab buildings. That’s part of the charm. Everything feels tactile and grounded, as if this story could unfold in the office park down the street, a few decades ago. The tools the team uses are exaggerated but not implausible, which helps the premise remain rooted in something resembling reality. This choice proves to be one of the film’s smartest.

Humor plays a key role in the film’s tone, and it’s used with a level of discipline many movies in this category struggle to manage. There are jokes, but they come from character quirks or awkward scenarios, not from mugging or forced gags. This restraint keeps the stakes from dissolving into farce while still offering relief from the more serious moments. It’s not afraid to be funny, but it never lets that compromise its credibility.

What SNEAKERS delivers is a smartly assembled thriller with moments of real ingenuity. It may not possess the narrative sharpness of the genre's best, but its charm lies in its refusal to conform to conventional expectations. It avoids the usual genre traps, focuses on people rather than gadgets, and manages to feel ahead of its time without ever losing its footing in the present. That makes it worth the watch—and maybe even the rewatch—if only to catch a few of the quieter details that slipped by the first time.

In the end, it's the combination of sly humor, grounded tech, and a team you want to spend time with that makes the movie stick. It may not break new ground, but it knows exactly how to work with the ground it’s got—and that’s something not enough movies can claim.

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[photo courtesy of KINO LORBER]

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