Reviewed by Jo Wood
Stars James Caviezel, Greg Kinnear,
Bridget Moynahan, Joe Pantoliano,
Barry Pepper, Jeremy Sisto
Written by Matthew Waynee
UK certification 15 | RRP £15.99
DVD Region 2 | Audio 2.0 stereo
Runtime 82 minutes
Directed by Simon Brand
I'm not averse to the odd psychological thriller, as long as it’s done well, and Director Simon Brand did just that in this excellently written, all-star movie. The plot focuses around 5 men with varying injuries waking from unconsciousness in a completely sealed warehouse in the middle of the desert — none remembers who he is or why they are there. As the men wake and slowly recall glimpses of their memories, they try to piece together events of the past 48 hours — all they know is they appear to have been in violent altercation with each other, before busting a gas canister, and poisoning themselves. There's a gun, a spade, handcuffs, the paraphernalia of restraints for hostages, a dead security guard in the locker, and a code-locked steel door leading out to the dessert, which no one remembers the combination for.
The lead character, Jean Jacket (Caviezel), is, unfortunately, the weak link in the casting, dropping the movie half a point off a 4 star. However, the casting of Kinnear, Pantoliano, Pepper and Jeremy Sisto was genius — these actors had true onscreen chemistry, creating depth to their characters, taking the viewer confidently through the twists and turns of the plot. Scenes outside the warehouse circle around the wife of one of the men, Eliza Coles, played superbly by Moynahan, who works with police to deliver a ransom, and try to track down her husband's abductors. The men inside have until sundown and the rest of the captors arrive to figure out how to escape, and more crucially, which side they are really on.
The final twist was gloriously unexpected, and a real treat to the unsuspecting audience. Brand's direction was edgy, and camera work interesting but unobtrusive. The story is very Saw-like in plot, only much less gory, and although not wildly complicated, and no esopse fables in the moral-telling stakes, it isn’t overindulgent in length and doesn’t pretend to be anything different to what it is. A real surprise treat of a movie.
EXTRAS* Just a making-of featurette
• Official UK site
• Watch the Unknown trailer: Windows Media | Real Media | Quicktime