Asphalt City is a new drama-thriller by Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire that aims to take a ground-level glimpse at the lives of New York City paramedics, and Screen Rant has a first look at the film’s poster. The movie is based on a 2008 book called Black Flies by Shannon Burke, even sharing that title when it premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. It will be brought to North American theaters starting March 29 by Vertical and Roadside Attractions.
Screen Rant is excited to debut the poster for Asphalt City. The poster offers a look at Sean Penn as the EMT Gene Rutkovsky and Tye Sheridan as young paramedic Ollie Cross. It’s a perfect companion to the Asphalt City trailer, further helping to set the mood and tone of the thriller. Take a look at the poster below.
How Asphalt City Was Informed By Real Life
Sean Penn’s best movies see the actor diving deep to bring something unique out of his characters, and Asphalt City looks to be no different. Penn, Sheridan, and Sauvaire alike put in hours and hours of time to understand the lives of New York City’s paramedics, which undoubtedly informed their experience on the film in a huge way. This is what Sauvaire had to say about his experience:
Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire: I had the chance to follow the paramedics for over a year in my neighborhood of Brooklyn (Bushwick/East NY/Brownsville), thanks to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, sitting in the back of their ambulance. This is also what Sean and Tye did during their preparation, to immerse themselves in their experience and life journey to accurately transcribe the speed of their actions, their words. We had this desire for a film as authentic and realistic as possible, which pays tribute to their bravery, dedication, and passion for their profession.
This dedication to accuracy seems in line with Sauvaire’s past work, as his based-on-a-true-story film A Prayer Before Dawn was seen favorably in Screen Rant’sranking of action movie martial arts tournaments. Where Asphalt City takes its real-world inspiration will be interesting to see. The film’s synopsis sets up Sheridan’s Ollie Cross being mentored by Penn’s Gene Rutkovksy, only to be challenged by the grey areas he must navigate both in his work and his relationship with Rutkovksy, suggesting a film driven to expose the good—and the ugly—sides of the world it reveals.
Asphalt City
Asphalt City is a drama-thriller by director Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire and released in 2024. A young paramedic named Ollie is shown the night shift through his partner, Gene. Seasoned and ready for anything, Gene prepares Ollie for a night he’s less prepared for than he could have imagined, and one wrong move could spell disaster for any potential rescue.
- Director
- Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire
- Release Date
- March 29, 2024
- Studio(s)
- Sculptor Media , FilmNation Entertainment , Projected Picture Works
- Distributor(s)
- Vertical Entertainment , Roadside Attractions
- Writers
- Ryan King , Ben Mac Brown
- Cast
- Sean Penn , Tye Sheridan
- Runtime
- 120 Minutes
