STREAMING ON TUBI! Indie filmmaker Jaron Lockridge guides down a dark path into the urban crime world in his feature film, The Stix. The city is on the precipice of a gang war as three factions posture for dominance. The first is led by Martel (Darnail Lanton), the city’s crime boss, but his place as king of the hill is being challenged. An unknown figure has ordered the robbery of one of his drug dens run by his brother, Buck (Vernell Woods), and a second robbery in his own home right under his nose.
The second faction is loosely thrown together by Rico (Antwon Burchett) and several of Martell’s henchmen. These gang members are only loyal to Martell because of his connection with the local kingpin, who supplies all of the drugs in the city solely through Martell. These gang members are starting to wonder why Martell lives so lavishly while they risk their lives for little in return.
Then there’s the police led by Sargeant Greer (Everett Anderson) and his crew, Harris (Nichole Tate-Jackson) and Ham (John Dylan Atkins). Sarge is tasked with taking down Martell’s operation, and even though he is making great strides in shaking down Martell, he finds himself understaffed. Yet, he believes in his team…to a fault. Now, the pieces of the puzzle begin to swirl into place, leading to a thrilling and unexpected ending.
First, I need to state the obvious: when you hit play on The Stix, you’ll instantly see it’s a low-budget indie thriller. The film’s success lies solely in Jaron Lockridge’s story, which pieces together his own version of the gang and mafia story. For the criminals, the story is about power. It’s not enough to wield power; one has to manage all of the pieces of the machine that keep you in power. Martell has a lot of loose ends to tie if he is going to survive the night.
“Martell has a lot of loose ends to tie if he is going to survive the night.”
Law enforcement—overworked and underpaid—plays against the criminal element. Led by Everett Anderson as Greer, the sheriff’s department is determined to end Martell’s empire, but his zeal for justice is hampered by his team’s rocky personal lives. In the end, what works is Lockridge’s world-building.
As films go, I was left wishing Jaron Lockridge had a lot more money to throw in at least three epic gun battles. There is action, but it’s pretty limited in time. I get it: the insurance alone on stunts is cost-prohibitive for the majority of low-budget films. Bullets and blood packs are not cheap, either. Lastly, I’ll say that lighting should be Lockridge’s next investment, as the film relies too much on natural lighting. Setting the crime story at night only adds to the drama.
On the bright side, Lockridge makes excellent use of the resources he has. The sound and editing are fantastic. The flow of the film is great…though it could be tighter. In the end, the acting is the brightest spot of the film. I haven’t even mentioned Darnail Lanton and Vernell Woods as Martell and Buck. Lanton is the film’s central figure, and he carries much of the weight in the story. Everything revolves around him as he sends out orders as the crime boss and recoils at the various attempts on his business and his life.
The Stix is a recommend. We need to support emerging indie filmmakers as they build their libraries of work and their growing collection of production equipment. My only wish is less exposition and more action. Despite that, Lockridge delivers a fantastic story and great performances from his cast.
The Stix is available now on TubiTV, Apple TV, Roku, Plex, and Amazon.
"…delivers a fantastic story and great performances..."
