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With the rise of the tech industry, we’ve also seen the rise of young entrepreneurs—brilliant minds who founded internet startups and changed the world in which we live. Some of them changed the world for the better. But Silk Road tells the story of a young entrepreneur who took a darker path.
Silk Road tells the mostly-true story of Ross Ulbricht (Nick Robinson), an idealistic 20-something who dreams of changing the world—preferably through exercising his libertarian belief in weakening the government by acting outside the law. After spending his young life losing interest in one idea after another, he decides to create a darknet site called Silk Road, where anonymous users can order illegal drugs and have them delivered by mail. But, on the other side of the country, disgraced DEA agent Rick Bowden (Jason Clarke) uses his old-school knowledge to work his way into the system.
What follows is a kind of cat-and-mouse story, exploring Ross’s rise to power and Rick’s somewhat unlikely investigation. While the film is built around Ross’s story, though, his part isn’t especially interesting. It all plays out with little to no fanfare. He builds the site with dreams of changing the world, but the site’s success leads to obsession and egotism (in addition to his already irritating habit of constantly preaching about his political ideologies to anyone who will listen). So while millions of users find themselves with easier access to a variety of illegal substances—perhaps not the best way to change the world—it’s not a big surprise that Ross eventually ends up very rich and very alone.
Rick’s story, meanwhile, is more interesting (albeit equally unsurprising): the story of a down-and-out agent who’s expected to finish up his career quietly, behind a desk. He has no idea how to access the internet when he’s moved to the cybercrimes department, and he’s ridiculed for his outdated methods. Yet, with a little help from an old informant and his years of experience with the DEA, he manages to get Ross’s attention—and, eventually, his trust.
Of course, the outcome isn’t exactly unexpected, and it all eventually spirals out of control into a cautionary tale about freedom and responsibility and accountability—what could have been a brainlessly enjoyable film turned just a little too preachy.
This battle between an overconfident kid and a washed-up agent does have some entertaining moments, but it offers few surprises. And, like Ross, though it starts out with good intentions, they eventually unravel.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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