AMC theaters finally opened up this weekend (in select cities, of course) and will plan to open more up in the continuing weeks. So, you know what means?? Movies are back, at least for right now. For the large majority, AMC theaters are rereleasing relatively older movies and the classics as well, in order to get people more enticed to get out the theaters. It’s smart and it leaves space for the new and bigger movies that plan to be released for the remainder of 2020. Tenet, The New Mutants and movies like WW84 are still slated to be released this year and it’ll be very interesting to see just how many people rush to check out those out once they get released to the public. But for now, and maybe the first new movie to open up since AMC closed their doors back in March is the latest thriller, Unhinged. A movie that was never deemed to make gang busters at it’s opening weekend, even without Covid-19. But for a movie that’s being marketed as one of the first new movies to welcome people back into the theaters, Unhinged is a road raging experience, that always keeps you interested and at the edge of your seat for the entire runtime. It’s wild, twisted and it surprisingly provides and sadistic and relishing performance from the one and only Russell Crowe.
Unhinged is really rather simple, but its simplistic nature lies within something that we all encounter on a weekly basis- road rage. Our main story focuses on a severly unstable man (Crowe) who has a confrontation with a woman named Rachel (Caren Pistorius) at an intersection, who then becomes the target of his rage. And from there, it becomes this shocking cat and mouse chase that never lets up for a second.
Unhinged is by no means a great movie and it’s certainly not going to be anywhere on anyone’s best of the year list. However, there’s a couple of aspects in Unhinged that really save it and worth it for the superb entertainment that it really is. The first thing, and maybe the best part of the movie is Russell Crowe’s performance. Russell Crowe is and will always be one of Hollywood’s most respected and treasured actors, simply for his body of work, whether it’s his role in Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind or Cinderella Man. Crowe, no matter what, will always pull out a terrific performance, even in a mediocre or subpar movie. Russell Crowe’s performance in Unhinged is quite astonishing simply because this is a role that almost any actor would love to get their hands on due to how much fun comes within the territory of the character. And from the looks of it, Russell Crowe seemed as if he was having the time of his life with playing this character. This was a character that seemed to go against the rules of an average thriller, which in hindsight made for a very enjoyable and intense experience. Similarly to that point, his performance is terrific and it makes for surprising and effective villain to be in the mindset of.
Another surprising piece of the puzzle in this movie is the character of Rachel played by Caren Pistorius. They may not give her much too at first, she’s very good in the movie, overall. This is the type of character that struggles to be on time and is trying to catch up on everything in her life. She get’s fired from her job, she’s late for meeting friends for lunch or breakfast and she feels as if she’s been a disappointment to her friends and family. All for which make Rachel a compelling character for the most part.
The other aspect that makes Unhinged better than one thought is that it was never boring, even remotely. This movie will always have your interest because the premise, while it is simple, it’s simple enough to deliver and execute on pure entertainment. Unhinged was written by screenwriter Carl Ellsworth, who’s the screenwriter for the crucially underrated horror movie, Disturbia, and while their are certain tropes in this movie that kind of make you roll your eyes and scratch your head, Ellsworth is able to bring the same sensibilities from Disturbia to Unhinged. Disturbia is more than likely the better movie than Unhinged, however Ellsworth the same kind of intensity, chaos and terrifying nature that makes and enjoyable and engaging thriller.
Unhinged is ultimately a mixture between Steven Spielberg’s Duel and Wes Craven’s Scream. There’s no telling how many people will go out and see it now that theaters are opening up, and while Unhinged is trying to make a message with it’s subject matter being about how one experiences road rage, it’s really having fun and it doesn’t disappoint. It’s campy, refreshing, mind numbing, very violent and Russell Crowe gives a great performance.
My grade for Unhinged: B
Zane's take at the Cinema's 