Film Theory: Collateral Is A Grand Theft Auto Movie

4. The Characters Are Basically Ripped From GTA

"Millions of galaxies of hundreds of millions of stars and a speck on one in a blink. That's us. Lost in space. The cop, you, me, who notices?"

Collateral has a colourful and diverse cast of characters throughout, the overwhelming majority of whom feel like perfect candidates for a role in a GTA game.

For starters, Vincent is a freaking hitman and his grey suit is extremely similarly to the one worn by GTA V's Michael.

As for Max, though he might seem a little too honest to be a GTA protagonist at first glance, he's firmly swept up in the American Dream with a desire to start a luxury limousine business, which doesn't feel a million miles away from the go-getter attitudes of GTA IV's Niko or GTA V's Franklin.

Max drives a taxi to make ends meet while dreaming of a better life, which has been one of the most common protagonist through-lines across the GTA series. That Max becomes an accessory to Vincent's crimes only makes him feel that much more like a GTA "hero."

Elsewhere we have a cameo from Jason Statham as a British gangster who crosses paths with Vincent at the start of the movie - a GTA archetype if we've ever seen it - while the jazz musician Vincent assassinates could easily be a mark from a GTA mission, and Mexican cartel drug lord Felix is a dead ringer for a typical GTA antagonist.

Vincent and Max's dialogues with the latter two characters in particular evoke the slickly hard-boiled pulpiness of GTA's deliciously entertaining banter, and create a convincing case that it isn't just Collateral's game-y story that vibes perfectly with Rockstar's franchise - it's the heroes and villains within it, too.

But there's one other character worth considering in Collateral - and it's in the movie more than anyone else...