Collateral

Appeals to viewers who enjoy stylish urban thrillers built around a pressured ordinary person, escalating danger, and a volatile partnership.

Tone

tense, bleak, frenetic

Payoff

adrenaline, catharsis

Pacing

relentless

Intensity

intense

Structure

real-time

Themes

moral courage, coercion, chance, violence, self-determination

Setting

contemporary, nocturnal Los Angeles streets and transit hubs