The Sticky Review: Entertaining But Unmemorable

Based on the true story known as the “Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist”, this Prime Video series follows middle-aged maple syrup farmer Ruth Landry, who finds herself distraught after her farm is shut down. Fearful that everything that she loves will be taken from her, Ruth refuses to give up without a fight and teams up with a hot-tempered Bostonian mobster Mike Byrne and a mild-mannered French-Canadian security guard Remy Bouchard to carry out a legendary heist that will leave everyone shocked.

The series has 6 episodes, each with a runtime of around 30 minutes.

The Sticky Review

In Prime Video’s The Sticky, Margo Martindale is a hardened maple syrup business owner who finds herself in a pickle. Working with two bumbling linchpins, she finds herself at the mercy of a corrupt system that threatens to take away everything she holds dear. The series brings forth several humorous moments that will leave viewers in splits while also getting into the heartbreak of our protagonists as they go through their own difficult situations.

Joining Ruth in their heist are Remy and Mike, both of whom are quite passive in their own lives and are constantly belittled by everyone around them. The three of them form an unlikely team and through their conversations, we learn more about their thoughts and feelings, which brings us closer to them as characters. The series showcases their interactions in humorous ways as they constantly butt heads with one another since they come from very different backgrounds. Each of them has something to prove to themselves and others and viewers can’t help but relate to some of their plights.

I think it’s interesting watching these three characters trying to figure out the difficulties of their lives. I found their unique yet similar problems to mesh together well and make them unlikely allies. At 6 episodes, each with a runtime of around 30 minutes, the series does a good job of balancing the heist and the personal problems and gives you an entertaining ~3 hours to enjoy. The bumbling gang messing everything up over and over again is quite funny, considering the tight schedule that they must follow. However, I didn’t find The Sticky to stick too much; personally, it lacks the charms to be either a funny heist comedy or a thrilling ride.

I think the problem might be the extremely short runtime. It feels a bit rushed and surface level and we don’t get too deep into anything as such. Everything feels a bit convenient and fast-paced and you miss out on the time to mull things over. Although I was entertained by a lot, I didn’t find the series to be memorable. That being said, I found the rivalry between Leonard Sr. and Ruth to be quite entertaining and it would’ve been great to explore that a bit more. The fact that it leaves some strings open in the end might also rub some people the wrong way.

Also Read: Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey Review: Chilling Insights and Heartbreaking Details

However, it’s the performances that might leave viewers more engaged than anything else. Margo Martindale, as always is fantastic and commands the screen whenever she is on. Guillaume Cyr as Remy is quite funny and you relate to his plights thoroughly. Lastly, Chris Diamantopoulos is also great and his character’s conniving ways add a nice flavour to the series, leaving you to wonder whether he deserves to be rooted for or not. Jamie Lee Curtis is also there as a guest appearance and her short but impactful part will leave viewers entertained.

Final Thoughts

The Sticky feels under-explored. Although the series is an entertaining time, it doesn’t give you anything truly memorable and leaves you wanting more. Some moments feel awfully convenient, although it does make you laugh from time to time. All in all, although possessing everything to give us something unique, the series feels a bit underwhelming.

Also Read: Spellbound Review: Sweet and Simple Fun