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Social workers are often unsung heroes, working to help families who are struggling and making sure that children are growing up in the right environment. But in The Gateway, one social worker goes above and beyond, putting his own life in danger to keep a mother and daughter safe.
The Gateway drives through the streets of St. Louis with Parker Jode (Shea Whigham), a tough social worker who’s fighting to keep kids from the foster system in which he grew up. He’s worked hard to keep single mom Dahlia (Olivia Munn) and her daughter, Ashley (Taegen Burns), together. But when Dahlia’s husband, Mike (Zach Avery), gets out of jail, it doesn’t look good. Violent and jealous and ready to get back to work with his old crew, he puts the family in jeopardy—but Parker is determined not to let him tear the family apart.
When Mike’s first job back on the outside doesn’t go according to plan, he creates a mess for himself, for his boss, Duke (Frank Grillo), for his family, and for their social worker, too. It’s definitely not the typical setup for an action movie—and Whigham’s Parker probably isn’t the kind of character that you picture when you think about social workers, either. Really, he looks more like a low-level goon—like someone who would be working with Mike instead of trying to keep him from hurting his family. A former fighter, he’s a tough guy with a heart of gold, out to keep the kids she’s assigned to protect from falling through the cracks. He definitely goes beyond his job requirements, checking on families at all times of the night and day, showing up to help whenever they call, driving kids to school when Mom goes missing. But he’s also tired and overextended, and he drinks too much to dull his pain and frustration.
While there’s plenty of action and suspense here, though, it all feels hazy. The characters all seem to be really angry, but there’s no real explanation as to who they are or what they’re so angry about. It takes a while to settle into the story—and the storytelling feels rather aimless, as if it were drunkenly wandering from one scene to the next. Add that to an already unusual setup and some bizarre soundtrack choices, and you’ve got an entirely off-putting experience.
The idea of transforming an unsung hero into an action hero is definitely intriguing, but The Gateway doesn’t do much with it. The story, the characters, and the action all feel just as vague as the movie’s title, ultimately making it less powerful than it could have been.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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