The Tax Collector

The Tax Collector is a 2020 American action thriller film[4] written, directed, and produced by David Ayer. The film stars Bobby Soto, Cinthya Carmona, George Lopez, and Shia LaBeouf, and follows two enforcers (known as "tax collectors") working for a Los Angeles crime lord whose business becomes upended, resulting in one of them desperately protecting his family from an old rival.

The Tax Collector
Official promotional poster
Directed byDavid Ayer
Produced by
Written byDavid Ayer
Starring
Music byMichael Yezerski
CinematographySalvatore Totino
Edited byGeoffrey O'Brien
Production
companies
Distributed byRLJE Films
Release date
  • July 30, 2020 (2020-07-30) (Vineland Drive-In)
  • August 7, 2020 (2020-08-07) (United States)
Running time
95 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$30 million[2]
Box office$634,145[3]

The Tax Collector was released in the United States on August 7, 2020 by RLJE Films. The film received negative reviews from critics.

Plot

David Cuevas and his friend Creeper work as "tax collectors" for an imprisoned crime lord named "The Wizard", collecting his cut from the profits of local gangs in Los Angeles. Despite his role on the streets, David is a committed family man with a young wife and two children.

One morning, David and Creeper meet with the leader of a local gang, who makes excuses on why his payment is short. David gives a speech about how its never acceptable for the payments to be short even telling him to "rob his own mother" rather than short them. Terrified, the gang leader agrees to the terms.

David and Creeper meet with Louis, David's uncle, at his tire shop headquarters where they have a conversation in sign language to prevent anybody from possibly listening in. While making rounds with other gangs, David receives a call from a friend and member of a Latino gang; they have kidnapped and beaten a member of the rival Blood gang over a personal dispute about a woman. David chastises the gang for endangering their business arrangement and demands the Blood be returned to his people.

David meets with "Bone" the leader of the local Blood faction and promises it was not about business or race and makes a peaceful resolution to the situation. Returning home, David's wife informs him that the count is short and they soon receive an ominous call from The Wizard in prison, who doesn't speak to David, laughs and then hangs up.

David realizes the short is from the same gang which they met with that morning, Las Lomas. During a tense interrogation, Creeper and David find that he was shorting them because his child has Leukemia and the money is for medical bills. He also turns them onto a new player in town "Conejo" who is trying to enforce his own collecting on the gangs. David and Creeper meet with Conejo and his henchman Venom. Conejo claims he is the new power and the future and threatens them. Outnumbered and out-gunned, David and Creeper walk away.

David again meets with his uncle who tells about how his father killed Venom's and how he and Louis ran Conejo out of town. Later, at his daughters quincinera, David and Creeper party with the family and friends while Uncle Louis tells David the situation is taken care of.

Later, a strange woman approaches them with a warning from Conejo and tells them to meet with his at his club. David later describes her as a "female Creeper". During the meeting, Conejo reveals Louis' head in a cooler and tells David to swear loyalty to him, saying it's the only way he will survive.

During a meeting with the other members of his organization, Conejo and his men assault the tire shop with bombs and heavy artillery, killing all but Creeper, whom they take with them and David, who escapes. During this time, it is shown that Conejo practices human sacrifice and voodoo.

David rounds up his family as he comes up with a plan. While driving with his wife, Conejo video calls David and shows him Creeper being brutally tortured and executed. When David returns to a hotel the family are staying at, he finds his wife murdered and the children kidnapped by Conejo.

David meets with Bone and asks for help. They successfully rescue the children whom Bone swears he will protect. During a violent confrontation, David kills Conejo with a bathroom sink. Bone then takes him to a friend at a hospital to get patched up.

David calls The Wizard, who is revealed to be David's father, and The Wizard tells David he loves him for the first time. Although David says he doesn't want it, Wizard tells him he's the King now and hangs up.

Cast
  • Bobby Soto as David Cuevas, a tax collector and Creeper's friend/partner[5]
  • Shia LaBeouf as Creeper, a tax collector working for a crime lord known as The Wizard, he is David's best friend and the two share a long history. Creeper is prone to extreme violence, at times killing and dismembering rival gang members without compunction.[5] and David’s right hand man.
  • Cinthya Carmona as Alexis Cuevas, David's wife
  • Mohammad Tiregar as Burack.[6]
  • George Lopez as Uncle Louis, David's fraternal uncle and direct superior in Wizard's organization.
  • Jay Reeves as Peanut
  • Lana Parrilla as Favi, David’s sister-in-law
  • Chelsea Rendon as Lupe, David's cousin who manages one of his dummy corporations.
  • Cheyenne Hernandez as Gata
  • Gabriela Flores as Jazmin
  • Elpidia Carrillo as Janet
  • Jose "Conejo" Martin as Conejo, The Wizard's rival, who has major connections to a powerful drug cartel in Jalisco.
  • Brian Ortega as Venom
  • Brendan Schaub as Negro
  • Jimmy Smits as The Wizard, an imprisoned crime lord David and Creeper work for. Later revealed to be David's father.
  • Cle Shaheed Sloan as Bone the leading member and shot caller of the Bloods street gang, who has a strong business relationship with David. Bone also appeared briefly in David Ayer’s film Training Day.

Production

On June 21, 2018, it was announced that Shia LaBeouf and David Ayer would team up for the film The Tax Collector.[7] In May 2018, it was announced that Brendan Schaub had joined the cast for a cameo role as a gang member, as Ayer had been trying to convince Brendan for months to take a role in the film.[8] In July 2018, Chelsea Rendon, Cinthya Carmona, Lana Parrilla, Gabriela Flores and George Lopez joined the cast of the film.[9][10][11][12] For his role in the film, LaBeouf got his entire chest tattooed.[13]

Principal photography began on July 16, 2018 and ended on August 16, 2018.[14][15]

Release

In May 2020, RLJE Films acquired distribution rights to the film.[16] It released the film in limited theaters and digitally on demand on August 7, 2020.[17] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the film held its premiere at the Vineland Drive-In theatre in City of Industry, California on July 30, 2020.[18]

Reception

Box office and VOD

In its debut weekend, The Tax Collector was the most rented film on FandangoNow, Apple TV, the iTunes Store, and Google Play, and fifth on Amazon Prime, and made an estimated $1–2 million from VOD sales.[19][20][21] It also made $309,694 from 129 theaters, becoming the third film to ever top both VOD charts and the box office in the same weekend.[22] The following weekend the film made $203,722 from 138 theaters (for a 10-day gross of $634,145), and remained first on rental charts, with a running digital sales total of about $5 million.[23]

Critical response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 18% based on 56 reviews, with an average rating of 3.53/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "A taxing and ill-advised crime drama, The Tax Collector fails to accrue much meaningful interest."[24] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 22 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[25]

Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, David Rooney said: "Ayer drives the action along efficiently enough to the churning dread of Michael Yezerski's score. But there's too little depth to make you care about the characters and too little imagination at work to make The Tax Collector pay."[26] Eric Kohn, of IndieWire, gave the film a "D+" and wrote: "With so much mismatched content and only 90-odd minutes to pull it off, The Tax Collector stuffs in the most exciting showdown into its closing minutes as an afterthought."[27]

References
  1. "The Tax Collector (2020) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  2. Chris Sawin (August 10, 2020). "Exclusive: The Tax Collector Review: A Dim Candle in the Darkness". BoundingIntoComics. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  3. "The Tax Collector (2020)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  4. "Exclusive: David Ayer's 'The Tax Collector' Images Reveal Shia LaBeouf Absolutely Killing a Goatee". Collider.
  5. "David Ayer's Shia LaBeouf Movie 'The Tax Collector' Unveils Plot Details, Summer Release". 14 May 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
  6. White, Nicholas; White, Nicholas (2020-07-31). "'The Tax Collector' Director David Ayer on Hiring People of Color: 'Where Is the Hollywood Chicano Superstar?'". Variety. Retrieved 2020-08-15.
  7. Galuppo, Mia (June 21, 2018). "Shia LaBeouf, David Ayer to Reteam for Thriller 'Tax Collector'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  8. The Fighter and The Kid (2018-05-09), The Fighter and The Kid - Episode 359, retrieved 2018-10-12
  9. N'Duka, Amanda (July 13, 2018). "David Ayer's 'The Tax Collector' Adds Chelsea Rendon; Dean Jagger Cast In 'Rim of the World' Netflix Film". Deadline. Retrieved July 14, 2018.
  10. N'Duka, Amanda (July 17, 2018). "Cinthya Carmona Joins 'The Tax Collector'; Cathy Shim Cast In 'The Sun Is Also A Star'; Jake Allyn In 'Kill Me Twice'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  11. Parrilla, Lana (July 17, 2018). "Meet my new daughter @gabrielaaflores from the new #DavidAyer movie #TaxCollector #familia". Instagram. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  12. George Lopez, Lana Parrilla Join David Ayer’s ‘The Tax Collector’
  13. Mancuso, Vinnie (July 13, 2020). "Shia LaBeouf Got Real Tattoos for David Ayer's 'The Tax Collector' So Like Your Move, Jared Leto". Collider. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  14. Chitwood, Adam (July 16, 2018). "David Ayer Shares First Look at Shia LaBeouf in 'Tax Collector'". Collider.com. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  15. Ayer, David (August 16, 2018). "That's a wrap on #taxcollectormovie". Twitter.com. Retrieved August 16, 2018.
  16. Fleming Jr, Mike (May 14, 2020). "David Ayer-Helmed 'The Tax Collector' With Shia LaBeouf Acquired By RLJE Films". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  17. "Exclusive: Sneak peeks at all the summer movies you'll want to stream in quarantine". USA Today. June 12, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
  18. White Jr, Nicholas (July 31, 2020). "'The Tax Collector' Director David Ayer on Hiring People of Color: 'Where Is the Hollywood Chicano Superstar?'". Variety. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
  19. Moreau, Jordan (August 9, 2020). "Box Office: Shia LaBeouf's 'The Tax Collector' Takes In $317,000". Variety. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  20. Rowles, Dustin (August 9, 2020). "Weekend Box Office: Seth Rogen, Shia LaBeouf, And The Most-Watched Movies At Home". Uproxx. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  21. Brueggemann, Tom (August 10, 2020). "Shia LaBeouf's 'The Tax Collector' Scores on VOD and in Theaters; 'The Secret Garden' Strong". IndieWire. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  22. Anthony D'Alessandro (August 9, 2020). "Shia LaBeouf Action Film 'The Tax Collector' Cashes In $317K At Weekend Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 9, 2020.
  23. Anthony D'Alessandro (August 16, 2020). "'Sponge On The Run' & 'Unhinged' Kick Off Domestic Weekend Box Office In Canada – Sunday". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  24. "The Tax Collector (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  25. "The Tax Collector Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
  26. Rooney, David (August 3, 2020). "'The Tax Collector': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  27. Kohn, Eric (August 3, 2020). "'The Tax Collector' Review: Shia LaBeouf's Racist Caricature Isn't the Only Problem Here". IndieWire. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
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