One Day as a Lion (2023)

One Day as a Lion is the kind of scrappy, character-first crime tale that wins you over with personality instead of pyrotechnics, finding surprising heart in the middle of a bad man’s worse day. John Swab keeps the pace lean and the vibe pleasantly low-key and offbeat, letting the humor seep in through awkward conversations, sudden alliances, and the feeling that everyone’s improvising their way out of trouble. Scott Caan is especially well-cast as a “nice guy, lousy hit man,” and the supporting turns—Frank Grillo’s looming menace and Marianne Rendón’s sharp, game energy—give the movie its lived-in, ramshackle charm. If you want slick, high-gloss action, this may feel too shaggy on purpose, but if you like crime stories that are funny, human, and surprisingly warm without going soft, it’s an easy watch that sticks the landing.

One Day as a Lion is clearly trying to be a scrappy crime caper with a bruised-heart dad at the center, mixing hitmen, hostage hijinks, and a quirky roadside detour into something offbeat and fast-moving. The problem is it often feels like a grab-bag of familiar tropes stitched together, with a rambling pace and action beats that don’t consistently land with the punch the premise promises. If you’re hoping for a tight thriller or genuinely fresh action-comedy, this may feel like a lot of noise for not much payoff. That said, Scott Caan and Frank Grillo bring some grit and charisma, and if you’re in the mood for a low-budget, oddball crime romp that doesn’t take itself too seriously, you might still get a decent late-night watch out of it.