Opens Wednesday, Nov 25. Tickets on sale soon!
In James Gray’s (Ad Astra, We Own the Night) deeply felt and intense crime thriller, set in 1986 New York, a naïve engineer, Irwin (Miles Teller, Whiplash, Too Old to Die Young) accepts a seemingly lucrative business proposition from his brother, Gary (Adam Driver, Paterson, Marriage Story), a former cop.
But when Irwin witnesses something he wasn’t meant to see at the Gowanus Canal, the brothers find themselves pulled into a dangerous confrontation with the newly emerging Russian mafia. As the threat of violence escalates, Irwin’s wife Hester (Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story, Lost in Translation) sounds the alarm, Irwin desperately tries to protect his family, and Gary is forced to make an impossible choice to save those he loves.
2026, 114 Minutes, USA, Directed by James Gray, Rated R, Digital
“Pointedly reminiscent at times of movies by such masters as Alfred Hitchcock and Michael Mann, the film is a classically crafted, period-evocative drama of often claustrophobic emotional tension.”
– Zachary Barnes, Wall Street Journal
“Pulsates with heart, rancor, and terror—thanks, in no small part, to standout performances from its illustrious leads Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, and Miles Teller.”
– Nick Schager, The Daily Beast
“So old-school in its gritty tone, sure-handed camerawork, and timeless visuals that it might be a new American classic.”
– Tomris Laffly, Elle
“Paper Tiger roars out of the chute as one of James Gray’s best films... The finely tuned ensemble is matched by Gray’s lean, sinewy filmmaking.”
– Peter Howell, Toronto Star
“Recreates grimy late-1980s New York with exquisite period detail. Gray’s long-standing questioning of masculine braggadocio and the fallacy of the American dream remains one of the richest seams in US cinema.”
– Tara Brad, Irish Times
“Gray directs Driver and Teller to two of the best performances of their individual careers.”
– Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com
