Review: Josh Hartnett returns with 'Inherit the Viper'

Posted Tuesday, March 10, 2020 at 11:40 AM Central
Last updated Tuesday, March 10, 2020 at 1:08 PM Central

by John Couture

I've been hooked on the Netflix show Ozark since it debuted. The Jason Bateman drama/thriller follows an urban family who relocates to the backwoods after a money-laundering deal goes bad and they end up on the wrong side of a debt with Mexican drug lords.

Given that Inherit the Viper traffics in many of the same storylines as Ozark, I was really looking forward to this review. Unfortunately, what works in a serialized format for Ozark falls a bit short in a brisk 85-minute narrative. Of course, that's not to say it's all bad. In fact there is plenty about Inherit the Viper to enjoy, I would just suggest that you temper your expectations a bit.

Josh Hartnett stars as Kip the oldest of a family of siblings that were literally born into the opioid dealing business. When Kip starts to get a crisis of conscience about their drug business, his siblings rebel igniting a powder keg of violence and betrayal.

First and foremost, it's a pleasure to welcome Josh Hartnett back to the world of the leading man. It's been a hot minute while he meandered his way on TV for the world to be reminded what it was about him that everyone dubbed as the next big "It" actor. While his ascension to the Hollywood throne hasn't been a smooth one, his performance here reignites the arguments for casting him in more leading roles.

To say that his performance was the standout in a cast that includes the wonderfully talented Margarita Levieva and living legend Bruce Dern speaks volumes of his work. Josh's Kip is certainly the emotional center of the film and the one character whose redemption the audience can easily get behind. But, his life isn't as black and white as one would think and these shades of gray give Josh plenty of room to fully flesh out Kip.

But Josh Hartnett is not alone. The aforementioned Margarita Levieva is quite luminary as Kip's business partner and sister Josie. We've seen Margarita in a myriad of roles over the years, but she's as calculated and cunning her as we have ever seen her.

For me, the defining scene for Margarita is when Josie comes across one of her opioid customers who has OD'ed in the bar's bathroom. Her immediate concern isn't for her client's wellbeing, but rather Josie digs out the remaining drugs so that she can re-sell them to the next unsuspecting victim.

To me, this is the heart of the film. For the siblings, they learned this family business from their father and they find out the hard way that it's nearly impossible to break out of this spiraling descent of criminality. And yet, they still try and rationalize their business as providing a much-needed service and helping their clients with their pain, despite the growing number of bodies around them.

With the opioid crisis reaching a pinnacle in the real world, Inherit the Viper is an important story that must be told in these trying times. And yet, I feel like the film pulls its punch time and time again which undercuts its potent message. The acting is great across the board, but the script fails them on occasion and the result is a rather mixed film that will provoke the tough questions, but doesn't force you to answer them.

All in all, Inherit the Viper is a good watch to enjoy the performances from Josh Hartnett and Margarita Levieva, but it's a film that will just as quickly leave your mind. With the importance of the opioid crisis, one would hope that a film on this important topic would make a more lasting impression.

Inherit the Viper is now available on DVD and Blu-ray.