REEL | Riz Ahmed and Lily James 'Relay' Their Paranoia

"I help people who see things they shouldn't have."

Bleecker Street / Elevation Pictures

Riz Ahmed and Lily James star in Scottish director David Mackenzie's whip-smart paranoid thriller, Relay (imagine a scrappier Jason Bourne). He's a hired fixer and she's a whistleblower in need of his protection as he navigates payoffs against corrupt mega corporations in the middle of New York City. For most of the film, things unfold in a deliberate, procedural manner that reflects the protagonist's careful diligence before delving into more conventional suspense territory.

Ahmed's Ash, largely a ghost of a person and recovering alcoholic, is a secretive vigilante middleman who provides a service to safely negotiate settlements between clients and powerful but dangerous companies anonymously by using the forgotten titular telecommunications relay service. James' Sarah hires him to facilitate a resolution with her ex-employer, a powerful bio-tech firm, with a non-blue Sam Worthington hot on both their trails while they try to evade capture. It's a taught, classic premise heightened by the use of analogue, out-of-date tech to further the disconnectivity of our contemporary times.

Screenwriter Justin Piasecki's character-driven script tries too hard to repeat all the elements of the bygone 1970-90s espionage thriller genre its replicating so closely before a series of late plot twists barrel towards a scattered ending. Both Ahmed and James dig into their lonely, isolated roles almost too well before we must buy into their unusual connection and possible romance.

Relay is an old-fashioned throwback to late twentieth-century paranoia born from the then-burgeoning surveillance technology. Its reflection of our corrupt, corporate-driven society only draws out the film's suspense even more. Mackenzie's confident direction only further highlights the needless third-act turn to standard fare.


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