Miles Teller reflects on personal loss and Paper Tiger role

Critical reception of James Gray’s Paper Tiger

The New York Times described the film Paper Tiger as an American tragedy.

An IndieWire review noted that Adam Driver delivers a career-best performance in the film, which it characterized as a devastating tragedy.

The New Republic called the film brilliantly murky.

Setting and plot of the 1980s Queens thriller

The thriller Paper Tiger premiered earlier in 2026 at the Cannes Film Festival. Set in 1980s Queens, the film is a gritty period piece that explores themes of masculinity and brotherly love.

The plot follows the character Gary as he recruits his brother Irwin to use engineering skills to assist shady Russian businessmen with a project involving the Gowanus Canal.

Character dynamics between Teller and Driver

Miles Teller stars as Irwin Pearl, an engineer who faces the financial pressure of his son Scott’s college tuition. The role captures the paralyzing shame of a father who makes a disastrous misjudgment.

Adam Driver portrays Gary, Irwin’s older brother and an ex-cop who is paying for an expensive divorce. Gary is street-smart yet blinded by his own fantasies of playing "Uncle Dirty Harry".

New Republic reported that Driver’s performance embraces narcissism so fully that it reaches a "state of grace". The title Paper Tiger refers to both men. Irwin is aware he is toothless, while Gary acts with his "fangs bared".

Supporting cast and thematic motifs

Scarlett Johansson plays Hester, the wife of Irwin Pearl. She internalizes a strain of seriocomic Jewish-mother guilt and shifts into a fugue state. Their sons, Scott and Ben, are played by Gavin Goudey and Roman Engel.

The film uses murkiness as a central motif throughout the narrative. This is represented by the canal surfaces and the failing eyesight of Hester. Victor Ptak plays the mob lord Semion, a character primarily focused on business.

The central conflict involving Irwin and his family

The plot intensifies when Irwin makes a critical error by taking his sons to a jobsite at night. The children are separated and terrorized by thugs.

Irwin hides the threat to his family from his wife, Hester. He contacts his brother Gary, believing Gary has the money and police connections to resolve the situation.

Historical context of James Gray’s filmography

The movie features an opening epigram attributed to Aeschylus that reads, "Let there be wealth without tears". James Gray previously directed Brad Pitt in the film Ad Astra, where Pitt portrayed an existentially addled astronaut.

The final line of the film We Own the Night is "I love you, too," which is spoken by a character during a police academy graduation ceremony.