Review: Unhinged (2020)

 

After an argument with a driver, Rachel finds herself being pursued by him, as he wants to teach her a lesson...

What happens if you take aspects of the following: Duel, Joyride, The Hitcher, Falling Down, Changing Lanes? Answer? You get a film like Unhinged. Written by Carl Ellsworth, who also wrote the superb Red Eye and the less successful remakes of The Last House On The Left and Red Dawn, Unhinged is a relentless pursuit film, where a man with SERIOUS anger issues chases a woman through the streets.

After we see the man, Tom Cooper, smash into a house, kill the occupants then burn it down, over the credits we get a montage of, I presume, is footage of episodes of road rage that were captured on film, while voices talk about the rise in anger in society. If there is one thing to be said about this film, subtle it is not.

Rachel is a woman who is struggling, locked in a divorce battle, trying to do her best for her son and herself. Caren Pistorious plays Rachel very well, capturing her frustrarion, anger, despair very well indeed. I looked her up on the IMDB and the only thing listed there I'd seen her in was Slow West, but based on her performance here, I think she will rightfully become better known.

There is good support from Gabriel Bateman, who plays her son Kyle, who gets dragged into the terror as the Man, is determined to teach Rachel lessons.

And then there is Russell Crowe. Crowe has a reputation of being very serious and determined. Of speaking his mind, of being intense. You can see some of this in his performance. However, what makes Crowe's performance so good, is that he keeps it on the right side of the edge. It would have been very easy for an actor to go over the top playing Tom Cooper, become nothing more than a caricature. But Crowe is too good an actor to let Cooper become a cliche character, which makes him more frightening.

Director Derrick Borte is not one who's work I was familiar with, but he shows great confidence here, allowing time to introduce Rachel and Kyle, before the action begins and when it does, it is staged very well indeed. The vehicle carnage is superb, as this the brutal violence when characters come to blows, the scene in the restaurant being the highlight perhaps, as he turns the screw slowly, building it up until the violence erupts.

The film is very well shot and designed, the score isn't too bad, there is a lot to enjoy here and enjoy the hell out of it I did.

It might be a bit predictable in how it will all play out in the final act, but that said, I found Unhinged a lot of fun. It's bloody, it's brutal and enjoyable as hell.

And just might make you think twice before blowing your car horn in anger.

Rating: 4/5