Bring Him to Me succeeds as a character driven crime movie led by an in-form Barry Pepper as a conflicted getaway driver navigating a dangerous situation.

The latest film from Australian director Luke Sparke (Occupation: Rainfall) features the genre filmmaker stepping away from the sci-fi/horror space and into crime movie territory to positive results.

With a depth filled script by Tom Evans and a stacked cast of Australian and international talent, Bring Him to Me doesn’t so much reinvent the wheel of the crime thriller as it does deliver an engaging film about two men caught in the aftermath of a heist gone bad.

Barry Pepper stars as an unnamed getaway driver who has more control behind the wheel of his 1970 Chevelle SS than he does his chaotic personal life. When he is tasked to deliver an unnamed naive criminal (Jamie Costa) to crime boss Veronica (Rachel Griffiths) for a “discussion”, the driver tries to piece together the events of their last chaotic heist for an answer on how to save his unsuspecting passenger.

More a dialogue driven piece about guilt and loyalty as opposed to the thrilling shoot-em-up promised in the films marketing, Bring Him to Me nevertheless works thanks to an engaging lead performance by Pepper, who successfully blends old-school tough guy theatrics with a conflicted conscience that nags at his character for partaking in what is sure to be the doom of his passenger.

In that role is Jamie Costa, whose baby-faced innocent demeanour perfectly counters Pepper’s grizzled wolves-mane look and evokes the right kind of sympathy towards a desperate man way over his head. Most of Bring Him to Me features Pepper and Costa enroute to their destination (or is it their fate?) and the discussions between the two about family, regret, and the (empty) promise of a better future that a life of crime could bring, solidifies Bring Him to Me as a crime movie in which the characters are its best arsenal.

There is of course plenty in the way of grizzly bloody violence, and the sight of Sam Neill and Rachel Griffiths chewing up the scenery as villains is entertaining in its own way. Yet it’s the moments of guilt riddled soul searching that makes this Australian made crime indie worth the ride.