One Mann’s Movies review of “Unhinged” (2020).
Bob the Movie Man’s Rating:
Certification:
US: R. UK: 15.
So, I took the plunge and went to my first cinema trip since lockdown. Cineworld Whiteley did a great job… all nicely social distanced and safe. And what did I see? Russell Crowe’s new flick, “Unhinged”.
Just read the label!
If you were ever going to deliberately piss-off anyone in real life, Russell Crowe would probably be low on the list. A genuine bear of a man! He looks like he could kill you with a single swipe of his clawed furry hand! (Although, he seemed to be in genuinely jovial mood with the BBC’s Ali Plumb in a recent interview).
In the movie it was a certain Rachel (Caren Pistorius) who randomly crosses the ursine-one’s path. She encounters his unnamed character (“Man”) at traffic light. Rachel is having a bad day herself. But the unstable and unhinged man makes it his mission to show her “what a bad day really feels like”.
Russell Crowe as a man with nothing to lose. (Source: Altitude Films).
A believable set-up.
Having had over 40 years of driving experienced, I’ve experienced two incidents of genuine road rage against me. One of these was in similar circumstances to Rachel’s experience. By me giving slightly more than a ‘courtesy tap’ on the horn to a driver who cut me up. Both though were ‘white-knuckles-on-the-wheel’ scary experiences. So although, as a viewer, I felt a degree of irritation at Rachel’s stubborn actions in the movie, it didn’t seem completely ‘out there’. You only need the other guy to be a psycho, and….
What follows is a thriller having a vein of dark comedy running through it. Yes, it’s relatively predictable and above-average on the gore rating but nonetheless enjoyable.
Mirror. Signal. Violent maneuver. Caren Pistorius… always watching. (Source: Altitude Films).
In the footsteps of the masters.
The movie, of course, blends some staples of the thriller genre. Firstly there is that favourite trope of Spielberg of a malevolent force, persistently lurking in the shadows to wreak havoc at any time. (Think of those classics “Duel” and “Jaws”. Blended with that is a recurring plot-point of Hitchcock movies: the every-man (in this case every-woman), in the mode of James Stewart or Cary Grant, uprooted from their hum-drum normal lives to suddenly face peril they are unequipped to deal with.
Holding that role here extremely well is Caren Pistorius as the luckless Rachel. She’s only had bit parts in previous movies I’ve seen – “Denial“, “Mortal Engines” and “The Light Between Oceans“. But here she gets a starring role, up front and central, and I thought she pulled it off really well. She also gets to deliver the best line in the film in the violent and bloody denouement! A leading actress I would like to see more of for sure.
Caren Pistorius with a public information film: a) never leave your phone in your car at the petrol station and b) never leave your phone unlocked. (Source: Altitude Films).
But fair dues to Crowe…
The star-power evident here though is Crowe. His portrayal as the steely-eyed unhinged psychopath is beautifully and believably done. A scene in a diner is especially chilling, featuring Jimmi Simpson as the unfortunate Andy, Rachel’s divorce lawyer. (If, like me, you were desperately trying to place the actor, Simpson played the young ‘good-guy’ tourist in the brilliant first season of “Westworld”.)
I am still hoping Crowe reprises his “Nice Guy” role of Jackson Healy with Ryan Gosling (also referenced in that Ali Plumb interview). But at least appearing in films like this prevents him following up on the Dr Jeckyl character from the Tom Cruise dud “The Mummy“!!
Andy (Jimmi Simpson), also not having a peachy day. (Source: screenshot from trailer, Youtube).
Unhinged is nicely penned and, in the main, nicely directed.
With the pen is Carl Ellsworth, who’s sparse career has delivered chillers such as “Disturbia” and “The Last House on the Left”. And although we’ve been in this sort of stalker territory numerous times before, the script of “Unhinged” delivers some nice twists. For example, the dangers inherent in “Find My Friends” style tracking apps. One negative though for me is the rising body-count of “innocents”. It gave me the slightly icky feeling I felt when the jumbo jet is crashed in “Die Hard 2”.
Keeping up the pace is German director Derrick Borte, someone new to me. The car chases incorporated into the action are tense (reminiscent sometimes of “Baby Driver“) and well-shot (by Irish cinematographer Brendan Galvin). There are the occasional “oh, really!!” moments, that a more experienced director might have chosen to excise. But on the whole, this is a taut little thriller, wisely sticking to a 90 minute running time, and never losing my interest.
Rachel (Caren Pistorius) with son Kyle (Gabriel Bateman), just before one of those “oh really!!” moments! (Source: Altitude Films).
Although formulaic, and at times extremely violent for a ’15’ certificate, “Unhinged” made a welcome and entertaining return for me to the multiplex.
Trailer:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdxDXoODKN8 . Although as it gives far too many plot-points away, I would suggest just watching the first 30 seconds.
