Stretch
Tags: flashback

Plot synopsis:
A man nicknamed Stretch is thrown out of his car after a traffic accident in which the other driver, Candace, ignores a red light. Miraculously uninjured, he confronts Candace, only to fall instantly in love with her. A year later, Stretch is inspired to give up his addictions to cocaine and gambling. As Stretch considers proposing to her, Candace abruptly tells him that she wants to break up. Hurt by the sudden rejection, Stretch's life spirals into self-destruction and failure, which he blames on Candace. A failed actor, he works in Los Angeles as a limo driver. Though he has quit gambling, he retains a $6000 debt to Ignacio, who demands the debt be paid by midnight. At the same time, Stretch begins hallucinating the bitter ghost of another failed actor and limo driver named Karl, who committed suicide in front of a customer.
His boss, Naseem, calls him to his office and tells him that their chief competitor, a mysterious man known only as The Jovi, has been stealing their clients. Unless they can steal clients away from The Jovi, Naseem will be forced to fold his business. Although unsure how he will retain his job or pay back his debts, Stretch takes time to set up a blind date with a woman from an online dating site. At the same time, he begs Charlie, a sympathetic employee, to direct any high-paying customers his way. When The Jovi steals his first client, actor David Hasselhoff, Charlie sends Stretch to intercept one of The Jovi's clients, Ray Liotta. Liotta tasks Stretch with returning a pistol and prop badge, but before he can do so, Charlie sends him another client, Roger Karos, an eccentric playboy with a reputation for extremist hedonism. Karos parachutes down naked to the arranged location and offers to pay Stretch's gambling debt if he serves without question.
As Stretch drives Karos to exclusive nightclubs and hotspots of dubious legality, Karl berates him for putting himself at increasing risk, both personally and legally, for such a small sum of money. Karos' final destination is a secretive sex club. Karos gives Stretch 100 minutes to return to the sex club with an important briefcase and a supply of cocaine. When Stretch attempts to retrieve the briefcase, he learns from Laurent, a French blackmailer, that Karos has promised to trade a ledger for the contents of the briefcase. Using Liotta's props, Stretch successfully cons Laurent and his men into believing that he is a police officer, and they surrender the briefcase. As he leaves the nightclub, he sees Candace and nonchalantly insinuates that he is both successful and important now. When Candace expresses interest in him, he turns her down. Unimpressed, Karl continues to harangue him for his inadequacies.
Stretch procures the cocaine from a reality television star, who then steals the limo. Meanwhile, Liotta complains to Naseem, who fires Stretch. Undeterred, Stretch reacquires the limo, which has been trashed, only to lose it to The Jovi's brother, Boris, who operates a tow truck. Stretch once again retrieves the limo, though it has been reported as stolen. Stretch fast talks the security system operator into believing that he is a cop whose life is on the line during a gunfight, and he returns to Karos, who complains that he is a minute late. Ignacio also complains that he is late in his payment, and Stretch instructs Ignacio to meet him at Karos' destination. There, Karos abandons Stretch to The Jovi and Boris, though Ignacio intercedes. Laurent, revealed to be an American cop, also appears and arrests Karos, who is wanted for embezzlement. As Karos prepares to kill Laurent in a sneak attack, Stretch creates a diversion, saves Laurent's life, and escapes.
Later, at a diner, Stretch gives the ledger to Laurent, who declines to arrest him and compliments his acting skills. As Stretch looks around the diner, he realizes that he has ended up at the meeting point he set up with his blind date. He is surprised to find that the woman is there; when she is revealed to be Charlie, the two laugh and passionately kiss.

Review: The Movie "Stretch" Takes place over the course of one night, and is about a man whom is a Limo Driver that owes six grand by the end of the night.At times this movie reminded be a bit of "eyes wide shut" and "Hanna," with similar colouring and locations to the movie "cosmopolis," but with a much more light hearted and humorous tone.
I did not view the credits beforehand, but was surprised with several cameos, and quite a few recognizable faces throughout the movie.Some parts are a little mediocre, but as a whole the movie is a fun ride, and offers some good entertainment while contemplating on things like fate and taking action.It was beginning to feel like Chris Pine was becoming a bit type cast, but in this movie he effectively breaks those bonds, portraying a wild, unpredictable man with a sense of mystery and insanity.At first appearance, it looks like it will be another run of the gun, 'wild night' movie, but instead "Stretch" offers some truly unique aspects, with plenty of creative and funny scenes throughout.Definitely a good movie to watch if your looking for some fun entertainment that doesn't take itself too seriously.
I thought it was a perfect action-comedy - right up there with 'The (original) Hangover', 'Horrible Bosses' and the like.Here's how it hit me..Story: Tight, to-the-point, succinct and actually, pretty plausible.
Chris Pine gave a performance that was much, I mean much, like Rob Lowe's character on Californication, except he played 10 times the character for almost the duration of the movie.
Norman Reedus was in the movie for about 90 seconds, so it was Patrick Wilson followed by Pine as the focal points of this wildfire.Of course I would love to see more of Jessica Alba & Ms. Decker in any movie, but I understand that this was not a romcom, it was a thrilltacular/comedy.
Stretch is a story of unlucky person and unlucky gambler who lives in LA, he wanted to be an actor but instead he's limo driver and fate never been on his side, it always has been until he meets Roger Karos (Chris Pine) and his life changes in one day.Stretch is so entertaining and every second of it is enjoyable with intense events that will make the viewer happy and satisfied, it's funny, edgy and a wonderful experience, Joe Carnahan knows what he's doing and that's why Stretch is a very great and entertaining movie to watch with great performances from Patrick Wilson, Chris Pine and Ed Helms with a very nice appearances from Norman Reedus as himself, Ray Liotta and David Hasselhoff.I won't ruin the movie for anyone who didn't watch the movie but my final words are..
I liked the film Narc very much, and even though director Joe Carnahan's following movies (Smokin' Aces, The A- Team and The Grey) were far from being at that level, I still found them competent.
There are some nice additions to that (Ray Liotta as "himself") and some others (Chris Pine going completely over the top, though he's playing someone different than himself).The action is really good and the dialog is finely tuned.
One of the craziest, most courageous risk takers in Hollywood responsible for such crazy wild rides as Smokin' Aces and The A-Team or the thinking man's action film The Grey and mastered the art of blending drama and comedy.
Since Carnahan is such a fun, creative and provocative he fills this film with so many crazy, wacky ideas and characters.Patrick Wilson gives the performance of his lifetime.
i don't know where to start writing my opinion on this movie the fact that the budget of this movie was 5 mill explain universal studio stupidity making this movie the story and the acting was the worse i have seen in years, i have seen thousands of movies in my life i must say this one really was the worse especially the language was used in the movie oh my gosh i hate this every second word in the movie the F word used no surprise the ACTORS who ware playing in this movie lost their touch playing in the big screen or even the small screen like David Hasselhoff he his so bad like 3rd league actor as far as i m concern he is finish after the bay wash was over i give 1 star to this movie because it;s not worth more then that.
When I first watched the trailer of the movie, it seemed like another Transporter movie, but instead a comedic action film with Patrick Wilson in the place of Jason Statham.
This movie includes a lot of language used unnecessarily, random scenes that don't quite make sense, and a crazy guy: Chris Pine who plays as Roger Karos, that does drugs, who also says and does stupid things throughout most of the movie, asking Patrick Wilson to do errands for him, in which Patrick Wilson changes his personality and becomes the "tough guy." Hoping to receive the amount of money he owes so he can pay off a gambling debt.
I tried to give this movie a chance, but I was sadly disappointed, the film kind of felt like the Hangover 3, the first two movies were good, but on the third the writers just came up with random things in an attempt to make it funny.
A fine director who burst onto the scene with the terrific yet underseen Tom Cruise backed Narc, then went onto direct the so-so big budgeted A-Team redo and one of the most underrated thrillers of the modern era in the form of the pulse pounding The Grey, director Joe Carnahan has had an eclectic career behind the camera, no more personified by Stretch, a film virtually dumped by its studio and left to live a life of relative obscurity in the libraries of forgotten movies.Aiming to find the success and balance of humour, violence and darkness that pulses through the veins of films like Snatch, Crank and the oddball exercises of the Coen Brothers, Stretch sees Carnahan try his hand at satirical insights into the world of Hollywood and the dark underbelly it entails but under the guise of Patrick Wilson's hard luck wannabe actor turned gambling debt riddled limousine driver Stretch, Carnahan finds himself on shaky ground and while the director has found success with action orientated thrillers in the past, his skill set is not used to great effect here.Stretch often feels forced and uneasy, Wilson in particular seems unsuited to the role that continues his long line of disappointing acting choices when films like Watchmen and Little Children show off his potential while supporting actors such as Jessica Alba, Ed Helms and the horribly over the top Chris Pine can't score a touchdown for a film that was searching for its greatest win from its cast.
Wilson's Stretch isn't also a creation that seems overly enjoyable and while films of this ilk often harbor a fairly dire central figure, Stretch isn't funny enough or stupid enough for us to really care whilst the narrative's "what a crazy night" type scenario never takes off even though it throws jockstraps, big bodied Russian's and celebrity cameos (another winning Norman Reedus moment a highlight) our way in abundance.Stretch is without a doubt a wild ride and a unique one in many respects but Carnahan's misdirection and the films unbalanced tonal shifts certainly don't help its causes and at the end of the nights adventures it's not hard to see why the studio dropped this film like its hot, as it's not exactly clear at who Stretch was aimed for or what it was trying to achieve.2 angry Hasselhoff's out of 5.
Am still finding it hard to believe that all the great actors that appear in this movie agreed to act in such a horrible film.The main actor Patrick Wilson was a boring miserable main character who failed to make me or my partner laugh even just once.
However, once the first few minutes are out of the way it just becomes crazier and crazier and more and more surreal.After establishing Stretch (Patrick Wilson) as a down on his luck pathetic figure the film then flits and bangs around all over the place - complete with lame cameos from David Hasselhoff and Ray Liotta.
Aside from the dumb cameos, the first half of the film lacks any real focus and takes an awful long time setting up the plot (which in itself was mind-boggling given how slim the material is with this film).I also couldn't shake this feeling that the picture was also trying way too hard at times to be funny; Chris Pine's performance is very good here and he is funny (for about 5 minutes), but his over-the-top antics actually start to become annoying very quickly.
Ed Helms (who was excellent in the Hangover franchise) is given the thankless role as being some kind of dead adviser/conscience character for Stretch - again although I can't fault Helms performance his character annoyed the hell out of me and I never felt that he was necessary to the story.Even when the film does get going it's rather generic plotting was never strong enough to hold my interest.
With regards to plotting then one could also address the vague and silly sub plot regarding Stretch and the PinkMinx - this felt like a dumb thing to tag on to the story and although the mystery (I'll use this term lightly) to this sub plot is revealed I never really cared for it to be honest because I never felt that I was given a reason to.Although the film clearly tries to be funny I just found it a little too wacked out, ridiculous and rather stupid, but sadly all of this came at the expense of anything remotely funny or interesting.
Director Joe Carnahan returns to the big screen after a long stint away, showing he's still got a great sense of gritty action, and dirty storytelling.I was really impressed with this film about L.A limousine driver, who after a life of making bad luck and even worse decisions, ends up on the receiving end of Fate after an absolutely insane night of depravity, criminal actions, and violence.
This entertaining wry comedy thriller has plenty of action and mishmash of good and bad guys chasing after Patrick Wilson's character who still obsesses over his ex-girlfriend while finding himself as a limo driver who ends up with a billionaire with strange tastes played by Chris Pine of the rebooted Star Trek fame.
One can find some elements of the comedy spy action movie Red (2010) played by an aging ensemble of A-listed stars, Eddie Murphy's Beverly Hills Cop (1984), and John Cusack in War, Inc (2008).Stretch beings a masochistic and weird tone into the mainstream as Patrick Wilson's weaves his away around many threats to his life with at times a witty voice over and periodic fateful occurrences.
The acting isn't bad but I personally think that the movie would have been better if there was a major star playing the lead.
Patrick Wilson seems to act the same in all of his movies, even if he's playing a superhero in Watchmen or starring in a horror like Insidious and the Conjuring.
I think it works because Carnahan has characters play it straight in situations which are beyond ridiculous and that is a harder act to pull off than any number of mindnumbingly stupid gross-out 'comedies'.There is in Stretch a certain internal logic which, although it doesn't make a drop of sense in the real world, does make sense in context, and Carnahan is skillful at pulling that off.
Just like Landis, director Joe Carnahan packs his movie with a few cameos like Ray Liotta and David Hasselhoff.Stretch (Patrick Wilson) is a wannabe actor in LA but reduced to driving a limo and heading to be burnt out.
Carnahan, ever the inventive maestro, channels the feverish action and intensity he brought to his awesome Smokin Aces in this non stop night ride about a hard luck limo driver who's forced to take on a variety of weird, crazy clients in the hopes of one big tip that will help him pay off his sizeable gambling debt, due in 24 hours.
A definite throwback to those no-nonsense days of '80s action comedies like 48 Hrs & Beverly Hills Cop. A movie that doesn't really care if you like its characters or even it for that matter...it's just gonna have fun doing its thing.
Of course it's extremely predictable and it's certainly a story we've all seen many times before, but at the end of the day you can tell a well-worn story and have it work as long as you have all the right ingredients (a game cast, a solid script and a no-bullshit director like Joe Carnahan) and I believe that 'Stretch' definitely does..
If you are in for a good Action movie/mind breaker with some parts of comedy than go see Stretch!.
'STRETCH': Four and a Half Stars (Out of Five)Action-comedy flick from writer/director Joe Carnahan (the man behind such popular action movies as 'SMOKIN' ACES', 'THE A-TEAM' and 'THE GREY').
Patrick Wilson stars in the film; as a failed actor turned limo driver, named Stretch.
I love the film and if you're a fan of Carnahan's, I'm sure you will too.Stretch (Wilson) is a failed actor, now working as a limo driver, who was also recently dumped by his girlfriend, Candace (Decker).
He also has imaginary conversations with another actor turned limo drive, named Karl (Helms), who recently committed suicide.The film is crazy, hilarious and action-packed; everything you'd expect from a Joe Carnahan movie.
Stretch is a well-scripted, well executed and humorously satirical comedy thriller film directed by Joe Carnahan and written by himself starring Patrick Wilson, Jessica Alba, Chris Pine and Ed Helms among others.In its opening, we meet a guy named Stretch (Patrick Wilson) who is a failed actor with a little less than five hundred dollars on his bank account.
As a limo driver now, he tries to make a quick buck by chauffeuring a few celebrities such as David Hasselhoff aka The Hoff (this client is stolen by 'The Jovi') and Ray Liotta who gives Stretch a two hundred dollar tip to return his handgun and prop badge.As his night gradually spirals into a chaotic frenzy, Stretch meets a handful of colorful characters among them a psychotic, coke-snorting, sadomasochistic hedonist and playboy who lands on the roof of the Limo half naked exposing his oversized scrotum, an over muscled Russian/Serbian macho who is The Jovi's brother, a half-assed druggy pop star who sings terribly and a French blackmailer who turns out to be an infiltrated fed.The film's plot is well-driven and executed with humorous and clever dialogue, and Patrick Wilson's acting is top notch.
The movie Stretch is a fun and entertaining ride.
It's fast-paced and Chris Pine gets to play a really fun role (I imagine actors love roles like that!) The ending is predictable but it doesn't matter because it's the right ending.
This Post-Modern, Self-Aware, Irreverent, sometimes Crude and Lewd Black Comedy is Wheelhouse for Writer-Director Joe Carnahan.Life isn't Fair ...for the Movie's Protagonist "Stretch" a Limo-Driver Loser that through some "Fateful" Events has a Chance to "Man-Up" and take Control of His Life that Spins out of Control on a Regular Basis.He barely makes a Living Chauffeuring Hollywood Types and Fat Cats as They make Whoopee with Their "Ill Gotten Gains" and are Cruel Carnivores.
The first 30 minutes or so of this black comedy sucks, big time, before rather weirdly picking up with the appearance of an uncredited Chris Pine as the mad, bad and very dangerous to know billionaire limo driver Patrick Wilson is tasked with driving around LA.
I like Patrick Wilson and in this film he was pretty good.
The film was entertaining and strange, but I am sorry to say that it wasn't a good movie.
That is too bad, since I enjoyed the film and it had the potential to be really great, maybe reaching the cult status of Dude, Where's My Car?The plot is easy enough to describe: a limo driver needs money to pay a debt and he takes a strange character as a client.
But that is really the only loose link and other than that Stretch is the kind of crazy, funny ride that never makes you bored.Personally, Jessica Alba really surprised me as for once she played a character that did not seem to be as dumb as a rock.Stretch is consistently good for what it is, an action comedy.
Stretch is the central character, in every scene, and the movie lives or dies on Wilson's performance.I must give him credit, he is great here, as an actor in the L.A. area trying to get work, but also working off a big gambling debt while trying to stay sober.
The editing, lighting, and camera work all look fantastic and the film has a very funny story and the performances from everyone in it—all the cameo roles, Chris Pine and especially Patrick Wilson—are incredible and really make a great film even better.
Stretch begins fine, a humorous flick about a day in the life of a limo driver...well acted by Patrick Wilson.
But after Wilson's limo driver character becomes involved with Chris Pine's eccentric character the film begins to deteriorate into the absurd to a point of needless slapstick contrivance that just wouldn't happen in life to a street smart guy who's not stupid.Too often sit-coms like this one are ruined by bad script development with scenes that could have been cut.
We had a solid start to the quintet with Mercy, and it continues gloriously with Stretch, writer/director Joe Carnahan's follow-up to his 2012 hit The Grey.As the title character, Patrick Wilson does a great job.