Disturbing the Peace is a 2020 neo-western action thriller film directed by York Shackleton and starring Guy Pearce and Devon Sawa.
Jim Dillon (Pearce) is a small-town marshal in Horse Cave, Kentucky, who hasn't carried a gun since he left the Texas Rangers after a tragic shooting that left his partner paralyzed. When a gang of outlaw bikers led by Diablo (Sawa) invade the town to pull off a brazen and violent heist, Dillon must pick up a gun again to defend his town.
Tropes:
- Action Girl: For unexplained reasons, Catie—who is the preacher's daughter and owns the local diner—has hand-to-hand combat skills that allow her to take on an outlaw biker and win.
- All Bikers are Hells Angels: A police officer must fight back against a violent outlaw motorcycle club that takes over his small town.
- Badass Bystander: A local hiding in the tray of his pickup truck with a rifle manages to take down several of the biker gang after they take over the bank.
- Bulletholes And Revelations: When Catie attempts to escape from the church, she jumps Amanda who is guarding the hostages. The two women end up wrestling on the floor, both of them trying to reach Amanda's gun, which had been dropped earlier in the struggle. The film then cuts to outside the church, looking at the closed door, and there is single shot. After several long beats, the door opens and Catie walks out carrying the gun.
- Clothing Combat: When Catie confronts the biker who is hassling her in the cafe, she tosses her apron in his face to distract him before she kicks him.
- Cut Phone Lines: The bikers cut the phone and power lines to Horse Cave, which also disables the cell tower.
- Demolitions Expert: Pyro is the biker gang's demolitions expert. He is the one who blows open the doors on the armoured car, and rigs up the fire bomb on the church to kill all the occupants.
- Designated Girl Fight: Catie is the one to take on Amanda; the female biker left guarding the prisoners in the church.
- Diner Brawl: One of the bikers picks a fight with Catie in her diner in order to get arrested: the plan being for the gang to capture Dillon and Matt when they they are transporting him to the county lockup.
- Does Not Like Guns: Jim Dillon has not carried a gun since he shot his partner during a hostage situation and left him paralyzed from the neck down.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Jarhead is a vital player in Diablo's plan to rob the bank and the armoured car. However, he objects to people getting hurt and when Diablo plans to blow up the church where the townsfolk are being held prisoner, this prompts him to make a Heel–Face Turn.
- Get into Jail Free: One of the bikers stages a disturbance in the cafe in order to get arrested: the plan being for the gang to capture Dillon and Matt when they they are transporting him to the county lockup.
- Gun Struggle: When Catie tries to escape the church, she jumps Amanda, who is guarding the hostages. She knocks Amanda's gun from her hand and the two women wind up wrestling on the floor; both of them trying to reach the dropped gun.
- Heel–Face Turn: Jarhead turns against Diablo after he learns of Diablo's plan to blow up the church where the townsfolk are being held prisoner. After he is arrested by Marshal Dillon, Dillon is able to persuade him to aid him in the fight against Diablo and the gang by appealing to their shared heritage as marines.
- Horseback Heroism: Catie provides Dillon with a horse and a Winchester repeater that he uses to chase down Diablo as Diablo attempts to escape town on a dirt bike.
- Human Shield: The movie opens with a flashback to when Dillon was a Texas Ranger and his partner was captured by a perp who used him as a human shield. Dillon's attempt to Shoot the Hostage Taker tragically results in his partner being paralyzed from the neck down.
- Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: Several members of the biker gang completely fail to hit Jim Dillon when he is standing in the middle of a empty street with no cover and they are are firing at him with fully automatic weapons.
- Impersonating an Officer: After murdering a state trooper, Dirty Bob takes his uniform and squad car and poses as a trooper to send the armoured car into an ambush; telling them that there has been a gas leak in town.
- Inside Job: Amanda, the new teller at the bank, is actually a member of the biker gang planning to rob it.
- MacGyvering: Dillon rigs up an explosive booby trap that kills one the bikers using items he finds in the hardware store.
- Mugged for Disguise: The bikers kill a state trooper, and steal his uniform and squad car as part of their heist plans.
- My Greatest Failure: After accidentally wounding his partner during a hostage situation and leaving him paralyzed from the neck down, Texas Ranger Jim Dillon moves to the small town of Horse Cave, Kentucky, where he works as an unarmed police officer assisted by Deputy Matt. Learning of his former partner's death ten years later, he falls into a deep depression.
- New Old West: A small town marshal has to fight off a gang of outlaw bikers who take over the town in order to hijack an armoured car. In the final confrontation, Marshal Dillon chases after head biker Diablo while riding a horse and wielding a Winchester repeater.
- Pop the Tires: While chasing after Diablo on horseback, Dillon fires several shots at the rear wheel of Diablo's dirt bike. He doesn't hit the tyre, but he does hit the chain, which disables the bike.
- Redemption Equals Death: Jarhead undergoes a Heel–Face Turn and joins Marshal Dillon in the battle against his old gang, but is killed when Diablo and the gang assault the police station.
- Retired Gunfighter: After accidentally wounding his partner during a hostage situation and leaving him paralyzed from the neck down, Texas Ranger Jim Dillon moves to the small town of Horse Cave, Kentucky, where he works as an unarmed police officer assisted by Deputy Matt. However, when Diablo and his biker gang take over the town, he is forced to strap on a gun again and confront them.
- Revolvers Are Just Better: When Dillon decides to to strap on a gun again and confront Diablo and the gang, the gun he retrieves from his house is a Colt Single Army (a.k.a. 'the Peacemaker'). Using this, he takes on a gang armed with fully automatic weapons.
- Semper Fi: Marshal Dillon is a former marine, as is gang member Jarhead. After Jarhead is abandoned by gang leader Diablo for objecting to Diablo's plan to blow up a church full of hostages, he is arrested by Dillon. While he is in the cells, Dillon is able to persuade him to undergo a Heel–Face Turn and join him in fighting Diablo by appealing to to their shared background as marines, and reminding him of the oath he once swore.
- Shovel Strike: Matt knocks out the biker set up in a sniper position opposite the bank by hitting him with a shovel.
- Still Wearing the Old Colors: After Taking Over the Town, Diablo takes town marshal Jim Dillon's badge off him and pins it to his own vest. Dillon later escapes and straps on a gun again to confront Diablo and his gang, he also pins his old Texas Ranger badge to his shirt.
- Taking Over the Town: Diablo and his gang invade Horse Cave and take over the town in order to rob the bank and ambush an armored car set to arrive in the town.
- Victor Steals Insignia: After Diablo and his bikers capture Jim Dillon and his deputy Matt, Diablo remove's Dillon's town marshal badge and pins it on his own vest.
- Vulnerable Convoy: The bikers ambush Dillon's deputy Matt as his transporting a prisoner to county lockup by faking an accident and capturing him when he stops to investigate.
